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 Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2012 12:20 am
██ : x ( HOMOS EVERYWHERE. )
██ : x ( EARLY MORNING & MISTY. )
██ : x ( THE WHI FOREST. )
Wren was in the forest doing the thing he despised most with a bird who knew a dictionaries worth of words in more language than one by now.
Which, of course, meant Wren was not in the best mood.
Another bear trap snapped upwards around the walking stick and Wren sighed. He hated finding these things in the woods, and habitually made an effort to disband any that he found. Today he'd already managed to disarm three and was planning a strongly worded letter (read: punch to the face) to the men who set them up. Pressing his lips into a thin line, he bent over to unhinge the cool metal from the earth and shove it into the rucksack tied to his saddle, drawing a mild rumbling from the swan perched next to it.
"So," Wren said, tugging at the reins and pulling the stallion forward. "What is the new word of the day?"
"I can ride a horse on my own, you know." Venice murmured irritably in response, tugging the reins away from the huntsman. "And it is none of your concern."
Wren scoffed, his tone turning wry just as a sharp, quick shink echoed between the trees. "Oh." Venice brought his head up, wings flaring for a moment. "That is the sound of one of your bear traps going off, isn't it?"
"Not mine." It was Wren's turn to sound petulant. "And hopefully we don't find an actual bear in it, or you had best hope your wings can break bone."
Venice smirked at him, his regality temporarily diminished by the company of such a familiar stranger. "My wings will do more than that once they are full grown." He sobered slightly, adding, "though I imagine I will have to lay more faith in your bow if we do encounter one right now."
Wren shrugged and let go of the reins completely, leading the way towards the sound with mild intrigue and a growing wariness of the entire situation. Little did he know he should have been walking in the opposite direction instead.
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Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2012 2:43 pm
Kalden was not ready for this. Definitely, irrevocably not ready.
He fumbled around the kitchen; he searched through the cupboards for ingredients. While he felt completely comfortable in making himself simple, dull dinners, Morrigan was another matter altogether. He had a far more picky taste for foods (or maybe the child was playing games with Kalden for his own amusement). Besides, did children from bottles need good nutrition, to eat a variety of healthful foods? Kalden groaned and fell to his knees. “I really do not know what to do,” he mumbled to himself. Why the goddess had bestowed such a child upon him was a mystery he would never find the answer to.
A chair slid softly behind him. Feathers rustled. Finally, the front door banged open. Kalden could still hear Morrigan’s chuckle echoing in his ears when he whirled around. “Hey! Come back!” he yelled frantically. His feet pounded against the floor as he scooped up his bag and rushed after the shrinking flicker of dark blue that was undoubtedly the crow dust.
Another day, another bird chase.
Bright blue flashed briefly when Morrigan craned his neck back at Kalden. He ceased running for a moment. “Well, well, looks like Kali is in another fit.” Lips twisted into a mischievous grin before he dashed into the forest with his guardian shouting and running after him. The child heard animals scurry through the foliage as Kalden’s yelling disturbed the tranquil silence. It was funny how little hesitation the guardian showed when running into nature. Wasn’t he a civilization sort of man? He kept laughing quietly as he ran deeper into the woods.
The guardian really was not suited for the athletics. Shortly after entering the forest, Kalden slowed to a walk. He placed a hand over his heart, thrumming rapidly in his chest while he took in deep breaths. “Gone…” he breathed. “Great.” He continued walking in hopes of somehow encountering the dust child.
If he had been looking down, maybe he could have avoided the sound of metal clanging and the excruciating pain that shot up his leg. “GREAT AEVAH!” Kalden immediately fell to his knees and breathed through clenched teeth when he realized he had stumbled into a bear trap. There was no way he had the strength to pry the claws open.
Great.
He was just going to sit here and groan, with no heads or tails of Morrigan (though he was actually staring down from a tree, the little bugger.)
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Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2012 7:39 pm
" - And that would be excruciatingly painful. Do not stick your leg in a bear trap." Wren finished in such a matter-of-fact tone that it might have made a lesser child cringe.
"But you can pry it off of yourself." Venice responded placidly, gently guiding the stallion away from nearby foliage. The noise they'd been following had vanished, leaving the both of the in a minute stupor over what to do and which way to go. Beside the Dust, Wren shoved another bear trap into the sack, scowling at the rising count of them throughout the forest floor. It seemed a boring task, and Venice was beginning to get a sneaking suspicion that the only reason he'd allowed the bird to come along was because he wasn't at all interested in the other company that would undoubtedly come along instead if he traveled out alone.
"You can. But then you're left, bleeding and crippled on the forest floor. Miles to go before you can find someone to properly fix your leg." Wren wrenched the sack shut and strode forward again, swinging the walking stick back and forth. "I'll put it this way - if and when you are caught in a bear trap, cutting off your limb is not going to be hard considering the damage it can do to you. Don't go around poking those things." Wren waved the walking stick menacingly in the Dust's direction, and Venice scoffed quietly, his wings puffing in indignant irritation. After all, how could anyone be idiotic enough to get caught in one of those?
Wren's attention flicked away from the Dust and Venice took the moment to glance around. The huntsman pushed on ahead, disappearing between the dark green foliage without even a sound. Sighing, Venice loosened the reins and urged the stallion into a slow canter, following the hoof-trodden path along after him. He didn't mind the long hours spent catching illegal traps, and he certainly didn't mind that it gave him time to learn to ride better and better. What he did mind was this; just as he was coming through the underbrush, a second and undeniably human voice screeched out so loud that it almost made the horse spook. What was more, the pull and tug of a nearby bottle-born was almost terrifyingly clear, like a needle straight through his system and down into his core.
"Wren?" The question was quiet and filtered through his cool, calm through forced self-control alone. "Did you hear that?"
Wren re-emerged, yanking twigs from his gear with a scowl. "Yes. Do you know what that sound was?"
Someone like me.
Venice's eyes flickered wryly, and he didn't speak his mind. "A man getting caught in a bear trap?"
Wren's lips twisted. "An idiot out where they shouldn't be." He responded scathingly. He gripped the reins of the stallion, cooing quiet words of relaxation into its ear. "Do you mind if I borrow him for a moment? I need to go see if anyone is bleeding to death in my forest."
"No, not at all." Venice's eyes flickered with quiet, regal amusement. "I shall go on ahead as well." His wings fanned out, snow white against the backdrop of dark green and chalky brown. The forest was just as much his domain as Wren's. After acquiescing the horse to the huntsman and watching him gallop off beneath the canopy, Venice tilted his head back eyes trained uncertainly on the thick branches above. It was undeniable that another creature like him was here. Now the only thing to do was to find it.
Giving a tentative flap, Venice took to the trees with a graceful leap, vaulting through them quietly and towards the source of irritation inside of his gut. But the source was not something he expected, and not something he should have ever endeavored to meet. No.
Landing on the same branch as Morrigan, Venice frowned, staring at him for a long moment as though to assess the crow prince. His scrutiny was subtle, layered beneath an air of affronted regality. The swan prince may have been impressed upon with a royal air, but he was still child enough to hold vanity inside as well.
"Good morning." He said quietly, and furling his wings. "Who are you? What was that infernal noise?"
Yes, nice to meet you too, Morrigan. Nice to meet you too.
Meanwhile, below the canopy of trees, Wren was encountering a much different problem.
"Oh. Its you."
Hello, Kalden. Nice to see you again too. How's the leg?
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Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2012 9:33 am
If only Kalden had been there to hear Wren’s and Venice’s stimulating conversation about bear traps. Maybe then the young man would have been careful about baring through the forest to chase after the crow dust. But instead he was on the floor, somewhat curled up into a ball as he gritted his teeth and seethed, wondering when and if anyone would help him out of this metal claw of a trap. He turned his head to stare into the trees and spotted a certain crow. “You!” He exclaimed, trying to rise, but winced when he remembered the pain biting into his foot. A pained gagging sound escaped him. “You…” he repeated again with timidity.
“Me?” Morrigan asked with feigned innocence. He remained crouched on the tree branch as he pressed one cheek against the palm of his head. The child smiled contently as he stared down at his guardian. While it was important to assist the young man at some point, the time was not now. He was new to the world, but he at least knew Kali wouldn’t die from a bear trap just yet. “What about me?” he continued, cocking his head at him. While he smiled, Kali continued to lay on the ground with little movement. It didn’t take long for the bird dust to grow tired of the lack of action. He had run into the forest to incite some fun, not to watch his guardian lay around and do nothing. Perhaps freeing the man from the trap would be the wiser choice if he wanted some entertainment. Morrigan began to lean forward, his small wings unfurling slightly, but then he stumbled backward when the branch creaked and sunk from the weight of a second passenger.
Dark blue eyes took in the stranger with white hair and pale wings. He leaned back as he sensed something about Venice. What was he? The same thing he was? He kept his lips tightly shut for a while. Morrigan turned back toward his guardian. He raised an eyebrow at the taller man who entered, but said nothing about it. “I have no obligation to answer neither of your questions,” he replied with a coy grin. He didn’t ask for the other’s name to avoid being a hypocrite. Aevah knows the swan prince would call him out on that. Smiling, Morrigan sat down on the branch, his legs dangling over the edge as he watched the two guardians with interest.
Kalden watched a second dust appear in the canopy and he furrowed his brows. Another dust meant…? He stiffened at the second voice’s appearance. Remaining mute, he managed to roll onto his other side. He winced as the trap moved with him. Kalden shot a look toward the contraption before looking up at the other man. At first, Wren’s words baffled him, but as he got a longer look at his face, Kalden’s own face began to pale. There were no words. Only a terrified yell.
All of the trauma.
[[ kind of short but oh well ja;ldfka orz ]]
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