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 Posted: Mon Mar 25, 2013 6:16 am
 The storm had lasted for quite some time, the theatrical show of lightning mixed with the crash of thunder gave Derecho something to share with Kaliri as they stood in the small cave sheltered from the downpour of rain. The intensity of the storm slowly lessened until it there was nothing more than the odd rumble of thunder far in the distance and only a small amount of rain still fell. But now the sun was forcing it's way through the clouds and he could already feel the temperature outside rising once more. A frown tugged at the corner of his mouth, he didn't want the storm to be over. Well that wasn't completely the truth, he was somewhat glad that the storm had passed but with it he also saw the end of his time with Kaliri. They had only spoken a little during the storm but he wanted more.
Stretching his neck Derecho peered out from the entrance of the cave to see if perhaps there was another storm rolling in behind the first. But the sky was clear and blue. As a drop of water hit his nose from the above cave entrance he glanced back at Kaliri. The scent of rain hung tightly in the air and he took a deep breath. "Looks like the storm is gone and there is no trailing storm to worry about." With a bit of reluctance he stepped out from the cave and into the day once more as the final few drops of rain that had caught on the leaves high up in trees fell down. "How is your leg feeling?" He asked not only out of concern for her but so that he could get the conversation going again. He wanted her to stay but wasn't sure that blurting that out was a good idea.
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Posted: Mon Mar 25, 2013 6:55 am
 While watching the storm had been exhilarating, in the manner that all such wonders of nature could be...it had also been welcoming in an entirely different manner. Although they hadn't spoken all that much...Kaliri felt..welcome? Comfortable? Yes..she supposed comfortable was a good word to use, in the presence of Derecho. Here she was sharing a cave with a near complete stranger which might have been awkward in most situations, but this had been anything but awkward. Why it kind of felt like she had run into someone she had know for a great deal of time.
It was strange. Kaliri had never been the overly suspicious sort..but she had never been the type to think everyone she met was a friend either. Perhaps it was because he had helped her. That had to be it. Shaken from her inner thoughts by his question Kaliri had to blink a few times before her thoughts realigned themselves to the present. Her leg..right! Shifting she chanced putting a bit more weight on it.
"It's stiff..and still sore but no worse and I do not see much swelling...which is good, its likely just a sprain." She assured him. There was a bit of puffiness to the leg but that was to be expected given what had happened. Moving forward with a slight limp she joined him closer to the cave entrance and peered outside as well. "Looks like its going to clear up nicely." She stated with a slight smile. She supposed the cleared weather meant she ought to be on her way to join her own family and no doubt Derecho's would be looking for him..but to be honest..she didn't really feel like leaving quite yet.
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Posted: Mon Mar 25, 2013 7:16 am
He was glad to hear her leg was no worse off than it was before. It would be sore for a while but as long as she could put weight on it and it didn't cause he too much pain then there wasn't really anything else he could do or hope for, the injury was minor and that was very lucky. He looked at her leg, confirming that there was only minimal swelling at the joint and gave his head a nod. And that thought made him frown slightly. If her leg wasn't badly injured that meant she was free to return to her home, which he understood was important and yet he didn't want her to go. Slowly he turned his gaze toward the sky again. "Yes...it's quite nice out now." He tried to keep his voice level but there was an obvious hesitation in his words.
He stared up at the blue sky that held only a few clouds for a few moments gathering his thoughts. "I...uh..." He started but then gave his head a shake. He felt foolish for what he was about to say but there was this thing called destiny and he was pretty certain it was standing before him and he would be a complete idiot to ignore it. Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves Derecho leveled his gaze to look at Kaliri again. "I know you need to return home, that your family will be expecting you and will become worried if you are too late...but I was hoping you would be willing to stay here, for a little while longer." He felt crazy and yet at the same time relieved that he was able to find the courage to say these things. "I enjoy your company Kaliri. I feel relaxed around you." Most importantly she didn't seem to care that he was ground bound and that meant the world to him. "I wish there was another storm coming." He said quietly with a nervous chuckle as he glanced off into the trees.
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Posted: Mon Mar 25, 2013 7:44 am
Kaliri was just about to agree about his observations about the day and perhaps add in a hope that it wouldn't get to hot when he continued on with the rest of his statement. For a few moments she was at a loss for words, Perhaps this stallion could not fly but it seemed that he might be able to read her mind. Strange that they seemed to have such similar thoughts..or perhaps it wasn't? It would explain why things had seemed so comfortable wouldn't it? Why nothing had seemed awkward between them..not even the silence, something that typically she found quite bothersome while in the company of someone new.
"I....I guess we could ask someone to send a message back home to my parents telling them I'll be a bit late." She offered with only a small amount of hesitation. IT wasn't like she was a foal anymore..she did not need to offer her parents or he siblings a reason for why she wasn't coming home immediately. It was just a courtesy and she was sure they would understand whenever she did tell them why. "I should probably rest my leg for a few more days anyways." She went on, giving herself a further excuse to get to know Derecho. It seemed silly to just run off when she had just meet him and already felt somewhat close to him. She would forever regret not staying..not seeing what happened if she did. "Do you think your herd would mind?"
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Posted: Fri Apr 19, 2013 7:49 am
Derecho held his breath a the silence stretched out for a few moments, it was the only time since he had met Kaliri that he felt nervous in her presence. What if she insisted on leaving? Well he would have no choice but to let her go and then would hope she would come back. His gaze remained on the trees, staring intently at them, too nervous to look her way for fear he would see her about to say no. But then when she began to speak he let out his breath when said she could stay if a message was sent to her parents. Well that only made sense to let them know she would be delayed in her return if they were expecting her to return home on time. Slowly he turned his gaze back to Kaliri and gave his head a nod.
"Sending a message back to them is a good idea and I know just the messenger you can use, he's quick, small and very trustworthy." He wasn't talking about a Soquili but his hummingbird familiar Rahkard. The small bird would take a bit longer to reach her family but Derecho knew he could trust him to deliver the message without any question. "The herd is quite welcoming to winged strangers and when I tell them you are my friend they will be all the more happy to welcome you." He told her with a smile, though part of him worried she might be swept away by some of the others taking to the air and leaving him alone once more. "And we can have one of the healers look at your leg if you want, though I think it's just something you have to rest for a few days and then it will be okay."
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Posted: Fri Apr 19, 2013 8:06 am
Kaliri was relieved to hear that there was a reliable messenger in the herd, it would make her stay far more comfortable..or at least she wouldn't be fretting about her message not getting through and her parents worrying over her...something they had a tendency to do a little to much of . They certainly didn't worry about her brothers the way they did her. Cheveyo, her herd leader had told her it was perfectly natural as she was the youngest and smallest of the trio and assured her they would grow out of it as they got used to her wandering and being her own mare...but so far that had yet to happen and Kaliri was far to kind hearted to just let them fret. No matter how annoying it might be.
"That is good to hear." She told Derecho with a smile "It only needs to be a short message, just so they won't worry to much. I would love to meet your herd and family...though I don't think a healer will be necessary unless it doesn't get better in a day or so." She agreed. Really she was pretty sure it was nothing more then a simple sprain and if she did go to a healer they would just tell her to do what she was already going to do..take it easy for a while.
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Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2013 7:37 am
Derecho smiled at her in return, glad she had agreed to stay for a while longer. He was looking forward to showing her where he lived and introducing her to some of his family and herd mates. "Great." He said before turning his attention to the trees around them. "Let's go find my messenger. He shouldn't be far, he tends to stick close to me most of the time but I'm sure he had to find shelter from the storm like we did." Derecho began to walk away from the cave where they had sheltered from the storm and glanced over his shoulder once before focusing on the task at hand. He needed to find Rahkard and send him on his way with Kaliri's message. "Rahkard." Derecho called out as they moved along a well worn path through the trees.
The hummingbird had been forced to hid in an abandoned squirrel den once the storm arrived. It had cleared a short time ago yet he had seen no sign of the stallion he spent most of his time with, so when he heard hsi name being called it was with great relief that Rahkard flew to meet his friend and noticed the mare from before was still here. Landing on Derecho's head between the stallions ears Rahkard peered out at the mare. "Master Drecho I thought you had been lost in that terrible storm."
Derecho chuckled at his friend. "I might have if I were flying at the time." He looked over at Kaliri. "Kaliri this is Rahkard he will bring your message to your family as swiftly as any other." Well perhaps not as swiftly but the hummingbird would never falter in his mission. "Rahkard we need you to fly to Kaliri's home and give them a message. She will be staying with us for a little while." He added in a happy tone and then looked towards Kaliri again, the hummingbird perched on his head looked toward her as well, dipped his head in greeting and then waited for the message. Derecho waited silently to see what Kaliri's reaction would be to his friend and messenger but also so that Rahkard could clearly heard the message and then could be sent on his way.
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Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2013 7:53 am
Kaliri followed Derecho out of the cave and along the pathway, giving him a brief smile when he glanced over his shoulder, as though to assure him that she wasn't about to disappear or anything but otherwise remained silent as he called out for his friend, almost missing the little bird until he spoke up.
"A pleasure to meet you Rahkard." She told the tiny bird with a warm look before considering just what her message should be. "I don't think you will have much trouble finding my home...they like an an alpine meadow in the mountains..just between two peaks, it is the only decent clearing in the area..really can't be missed." She assured the bird before laying out her actual message. "My parents are Jarita and Eversong..the only two full sized Soquili in the herd currently..so you should have trouble finding them either..if you could just tell them not to fret, nothing is wrong...I've just decided to stay with a friend for a little while." A friend..yes she supposed that was a good enough way of putting it. For now anyways. "I..really appreciate it.." She added with a smile. Hopefully the trip wouldn't be too far for the little bird..but she did not voice this concern. Having grown up with Usdia well..she was quite aware how sensitive others could be when it came to mentioning their size being some sort of disadvantage.
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Posted: Thu May 23, 2013 6:22 am
Rahkard listened carefully to the mares message and then when he was certain she was done speaking he gave his head a nod. "They are located in a alpine meadow in the mountains, only good clearing there. Your parents are the only full sized Soquili there. Tell them you are alright and that you are spending time with your friend." The little bird paused and glanced down. "Is there anything else you need from me Master Derecho?"
Hearing that her parents were the only full sized Soquili in the herd had been an unexpected surprise. He had figured her herd would be similar to his own, only much smaller, but it seemed they were smaller in a different sense. For a moment he worried about bringing her back with him, surely if any of this family found this out, especially his father, she would be less than welcomed. But he was determined to learn more about Kaliri and so he would bring her home anyways and simply warn her about mentioning these things to others. Rahkard's question brought him fully back to the present and he gave his head a gentle shake so as not to dislodge the bird. "No Rahkard that will be all for now. Best be on your way to get as far as you can before nightfall."
Derecho watched as the little bird hovered in front of him for a short bit, the bird nodded to both him and then Kaliri and then in a blur of wings took off, quickly disappearing behind trees. Now after learning that little tidbit about her family Derecho was relieved that he chose Rahkard over one of the herd messengers. After a few moments he tore his gaze away from where the bird had disappeared among the branches and looked at Kaliri. "It is still a ways to the main herd lands, so we best get moving. We'll go as fast as your ankle will allow it." He began to take a step and then stopped, best to warn her ahead of time. "I assume that when you say you parents are the only full sized Soquili in that herd that you mean the others are those...Usdia I think they are called? As much as I want to learn about where you grew up it is best to not mention these things to anyone else in my herd. They are, and my father especially, not accepting of unwinged and flightless Soquili." He paused for a moment and took a breath. "But since I am practically flightless I feel like I understand those other breeds and so my families bias is theirs alone, I do not feel the same way they do."
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Posted: Thu May 23, 2013 7:07 am
Kaliri nodded to the little bird, murmuring her thanks before it flitted off to deliver her message. It was such a tiny thing that bird..she hoped the distance was not to great an effort for him. Turning her attention back to Derecho she moved to follow him when she started off only to pull up again when he stopped to speak of his family. A warning? Kaliri was confused for a few moments..oh sure he had spoken of his families love of wings and flying before but she did not know that it went quite so deep as he was implying.
"Yes...the leader of our herd is an Usdia stallion named Cheveyo, he fled to the mountains long ago to find a safe place to raise his basket after her mothers disappearance, he found the meadow and seeing that it was a peaceful place stayed..since then the family has grown into quite a large little herd. My parents stumbled across the clearing while on a trip one day..and rescued Cheveyo's grandson from a flooding stream..they became friends and visited often, becoming honorary members of the herd although they did not live there full time. During one of their visits my mother found out she was expecting and as Little Meadow was so safe they stayed to raise us there. There is another full sized Soquilli in the herd..an alicorn mare named Mercy whom Cheveyo found as an abandoned basket..but she is currently off for training with Cheveyo's friend. A Knight named Ironforge." Kaliri shared a quick summary of the herd and how her parents came to be a part of it.
"Why do your parents dislike the flightless?" She asked with a bit of curiosity and a bit of hesitation..she had kept to herself the fact that her own grandmother was flightless.
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Posted: Thu May 23, 2013 7:24 am
Giving her that warning seemed to be a good thing and now he was learning a bit more about her herd. He nodded his head as he listened to Kaliri's explanation, short as it was, as to how the herd came to be and a quick run down of how her family became a part of it. He would be lying if he said he didn't want to learn more about them, it was an interesting summary and he hoped to learn more about this herd and more importantly Kaliri in the time that she spent here. "It sounds like a very pleasant place to grow up. This stallion, Cheveyo, he seems very open minded allowing others to live among him like that."
Her question about why the herd doesn't like flightless Soquili made him chew his lip a bit. "I don't know all of the details, it's not something my father openly talks about, at least not with me." He paused before continuing. "This is something that happened before this herd was formed, back in my fathers old family herd from what I understand. My father was a guardian back then, it was winter and he was away from the herd...I don't remember the reason, likely a patrol of some sort. The herd was attacked by predators and by the time my father returned...well the herd was gone." He paused there for a moment before continuing. "It seems my father blamed their inability to fly as the reason the herd perished. They were too weak in his mind and so he left and eventually created this herd, where only winged members were allowed."
Derecho came to a stop and looked down at the ground for a moment gathering his thoughts. "I'm sure it was hard on him to see his family slaughtered but I don't know it it was right for him to blame it on their lack of wings or to call them weak. Having wings doesn't mean one can fly, I am a sure example of that." And it was a reason why he gave his father a wide berth. He loved his family but the weight of everything he couldn't do rested very heavily on Derecho's shoulders.
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Posted: Thu May 23, 2013 7:36 am
The explanation gave Kaliri a little bit more insight and it went a great deal into explaining his father's outlook, traumatic events often shaped who we became..for better or for worse. Kaliri thought perhaps Derecho's father had chosen a rather wrong path but choices made in pain could hardly be trusted and she wasn't about to go condeeming him without meeting him. He could very well be a fine stallion..one who just had a tragic past that he couldn't come to terms with. It was sad that he let that tragedy keep him from knowing the friendships he could have from those without wings however.
It brought to light a bit more about Derecho too, he had made mention that he was a weak flyer, that he wasn't able to do what his family did but now there was more to the story - Kaliri couldn't imagine growing up where flying was so entwined in who you were..but yet not be able to do it. Reaching out she nosed him slightly in comfort. "It is a terrible story, but do not let it weigh to heavily upon you..perhaps you have been made the way you are to show the error of that judgement. Flying could not have saved me..but you did." She pointed out. It was not a large victory, nor likely to be seen on the same scale as the disaster which struck his father..but it had certainly meant a lot to her future. If Derecho had not come along she shuddered to think about what might have happened.
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Posted: Thu Jun 06, 2013 10:23 am
He nodded slightly and began to walk once more, resuming the pace that they had been traveling at earlier, a pace that seemed to not hinter her injured leg. "It's very tragic and I can't even imagine going through something like that." The thought of losing your entire family, it was something Derecho didn't even want to think about. "I try not to let it weigh me down, I keep telling myself that one day I will either be able to fly and do my family proud or I will find my place in the herd even if I am stuck to the ground." But I worry too, I know my parents love me, but what if there comes a day when my father no longer tolerates my inability to fly?" It was something he hated to think about and yet was constantly on his mind. More than anything else he wanted to beat this weakness that plagued him and join his family in the sky, show his parents he belongs in such a strong herd.
Her next statement made him smile. "You're right. If I had been flying then I would have never seen you where you had been stuck. I'm not sure if I'll ever change my fathers opinions on wingless Soquili but I would give up my wings if I had to to save you again." Part of him was joking, because without his wings he would have no home and no family here, but part of him was also quite serious about that. While he only just met Kaliri earlier today he felt a strong connection to her and her ease of acceptance of him and his flaws made the world a more welcoming place.
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Posted: Thu Jun 06, 2013 11:04 am
Kaliri found it hard to think about a father that would give up on his son..or any of his children just because they couldn't fly. It was.. inconceivable, or perhaps it felt that way to her because she knew her family would never do something like that. There was something to be said for growing up in an Usdia herd..if nothing else you learned to accept the differences of those around you. Still telling Derecho that she was sure he would be welcome with her family if things ever went that way didn't seem like the right thing to say at the moment, nor did it seem like more assurances that she was sure such a thing would never happen was the proper way to handle it either.
Hmmm...her mother always said that males liked to fix things, while mares simply wanted to vent and then figure things out for themselves, stallions always wanted to try and fix the problem - which led to all sorts of fussing from one to another. Still Derecho was a stallion, perhaps the proper way to handle this was to approach it like a stallion. "Have you ever sought out a healer? Not a herbal healer..they are good of course but..a unicorn? Their healing is magic and sometimes they can fix things that no herbal healer can.." She doubted that they had - with his herd so against anything without wings it was unlikely that he had the opportunity to see or speak with any pure unicorns.
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Posted: Thu Jun 06, 2013 1:26 pm
Derecho remained silent for a bit while he thought about it. He had been to see the herd healers many times as a foal but none of them were pure unicorn. He gave his head a bit of a shake and looked over at Kaliri. "When I was younger I spent a lot of time with healers. I took every strengthening herb they had and while some helped a bit they never allowed me to be as strong as my brothers. Eventually I stopped taking them because the small improvement wasn't worth it." It had been at the beginning but as time went on the herbs lost their effectiveness. "Seeking out a pure unicorn healer is something I have thought about before, but in order to do that I would need to leave the herd. I don't know where I would find one and while I have heard stories of how they can heal even the gravest of wounds I wonder if they can do anything to restore my strength. It may not be something that can be healed by any means." And that was something he had come to accept to a certain point.
He guided her carefully up an incline, making sure she didn't strain her ankle any and then came to a stop at the top. "Down there," he said motioning with his nose, "is the herds lands." It was a vast area with plenty of shelter, grass to eat, water to drink but also large open areas to accommodate a herd of flyers where they could take off and land with no issue. It would take them a while longer to reach the main herd lands but he wanted her to get as close to a birds eye view as possible before they entered the lands. "Come. It's time to see the world of flyers from a grounded Soquili's perspective." He told her with a bit of a laugh and then began the slow descent down the rise that would take them both into the lands.
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