|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Thu Feb 20, 2014 11:45 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Feb 20, 2014 11:45 pm
Lazarus drank gratefully from the winding stream at his feet, his sides heaving and damp with sweat from his latest excursion. As of late, his mother had encouraged him to fly more and more. He was loathe to leave her, especially because his wings had suffered from their lack of use and had grown weak, but she had looked so proud and happy when he managed to get a few feet off the air that he thought he could bear it for her sake.
Today wasn’t supposed to have been any different: he was going to go a few rounds to please her and then go right back to joining her on the ground. Of course, it hadn’t worked out that way. When he tried to land, a strong breeze caught the furls of his wings and he hadn’t been skilled enough to slide past it. He was at its mercy, and it’d chosen to leave him here, wherever “here” was.
Though he’d tried to return, he had exerted himself fighting the wind and was in no state to go airborne again for a while. Flying looked easy – and it could be, if he could find a nice thermal – but the entire act of running and flapping and trying to get lift in the first place was difficult, especially for a beginner like him.
He’d resigned himself to being stuck for some time, and he thought he could deal with it. But when he saw how low the sun had gotten, he could not help the nervous stir of his wings nor the quickened pace of his breathing. He couldn’t recall a time he’d ever spent the night alone.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Feb 20, 2014 11:45 pm
LunaRei_SilverBlood:
As it would be, Crusnik had a later start then she was hoping for to head out on her trip. Her mother Lailah simply couldn’t let her go. And don’t get her wrong. Cru loved both her parents but she wanted to find her place. And she knew that her parents wanted to have an empty nest for a bit at least…
Crusnik looked at the map that Lutra had given her to find the Eternal Flame herd lands as she headed down the path. There was no way that she could get to the herd lands before dark but she knew these woods and had no fears. This would allow her to take her time and as such she realized that she had gotten thirsty. There wouldn’t be another stream for a couple miles after the one she was coming up on.
Veering from the main path she took a small one into the foliage. Her silver eyes took in the sight of the stallion, her head tilted lightly. She had never seen him before and not to many ventured toward the caves. As the sun began to set she lowered her head some in a respectful greeting.
“Good evening gentle stallion.” Her voice was soft yet it was cold at the same time. Crusnik never had friends as a foal outside of Lutra. Her siblings now gone with their mates, the mare was in general lonely. The distance she kept from others cause them to view her as cold and distance when she was simply in fact nervous and shy. Her bluntness often hurt their feelings.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Feb 20, 2014 11:45 pm
Lazarus nearly jumped when the mare appeared seemingly out of nowhere, but he wasn’t frightened. On the contrary, he was grateful for another’s presence and did not mind her coldness. He, who was used to warmth and love from his own family, could not help but to see it in others, and his good nature was augmented with her timing.
“Good evening,” he said, politely dipping his own head in return. He thought her pelt was beautiful, glimmering like starlight against the fading sun. It reflected the dangerous time of night it was true, but he’d never found monsters in the heavens. The lighted night sky was the first thing he’d seen when he first fled the demons from the dense forest of his birth, and it reminded him of peaceful times spent beside his mother’s side.
Her horn, too, black and spiraling as it was, did not seem very dangerous. He didn’t doubt it could be used to hurt if she wished and it was certainly better positioned than his own set, but he could not imagine it being used for anything other than good. And her tail: it was the closest he’d seen to his own, though longer, and it added a grace to her steps that even he, with his kirin blood, could not match.
What was she? Who was she?
“O-oh,” he spluttered, his cheeks growing flush when he realized he’d been staring. “Did you come for the stream?”
He stepped aside to give her room, a flush rising to his cheeks, his eyes flashing to the surrounding area, to her, and back again. He wasn’t used to being around others, and he wondered if he’d behaved so inappropriately that she’d chase him away.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Feb 20, 2014 11:45 pm
LunaRei_SilverBlood:
Crusnik blinked at him and walked past him to the stream. She was trying hard not to stare at him. But his pelt was different then she’s seen before, it had a warm look to it. Not to mention his horns and the scales… He must be what her mother called a kirin from what she could remember. Crusnik never ventured far from home which had kept her worldly knowledge limited and what her parents talked to her about. Her father was from lands far away and her mother had travelled so she knew a lot, but never experienced it for herself.
Lowering her head to drink some water she wondered what she should be saying to the stallion. He seemed friendly enough… But she noticed that he seemed to hold his wings strangely. Taking a step back she looked over at him again. Her voice soft and barely audible, she felt so nervous.
“You’re holding your wings strangely.” She stated in that soft tone. Nothing following, she seemed to assume that he would realize she was asking if he had injured his wing. Her healing ability wasn’t as strong as some pure Unicorns, but with repeated treatment his wing would be fine. But she was often mistake for a pure Unicorn. Her mother’s a wind but she was the only one that didn’t inherit wings.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu May 29, 2014 2:20 am
 Lazarus stiffened when she passed, expecting rebuke but receiving none. She slipped to the stream without a word, and he would’ve thought he’d seriously offended her had she not rested her dove-grey eyes upon him.
He lifted the wing closest to her so that his side could be better seen, though its drooping angle that betrayed his fatigue. It was not out of vanity that he did so – he’d never been scrutinized before, and as he’d been staring at the mare earlier, he figured it was only right that he allow her to do the same if she wished. If that was not the appropriate response, he wasn’t aware of it, but was merely relieved to see she had not come to despise his company.
“Ah. Well... yes.” He folded his wings closer, abashed, his own voice quiet but still audible in the growing dusk. It was that short span of time after the birds had ceased their songs but before the chirp of insects began, and only the murmur of the slow-moving stream could be heard in the silence that followed.
“The wind was, um, difficult to fly through,” he admitted after a moment, his blush returning. He knew it was embarrassing to be nearly an adult and still unable to fly properly, but it never occurred to him to lie.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu May 29, 2014 2:20 am
LunaRei_SilverBlood Crusnik twitched her ear and she nodded lightly in an understanding way. “I see. My mother always told me that practice makes perfect.” She gave a matter of fact nod. Again, she didn’t have wings so it’s not something she could fully understand. “You will become stronger with time and practice.” The stallion had some odd markings, was he from a herd maybe? But they could just be his natural markings. She really shouldn’t ask in case she’d offend him.
She glanced up to the sky. It was going to get dark soon. The area itself wasn’t too dangerous but it was always best to not be wandering around the either. “Fire, at the caves.” She stated with no other context, she wanted him to go with her, but she was a bit too embarrassed to really admit that. She wanted to talk with him more, not having much exposure to others. She was still looking for Lutra’s herd still and there was in fact a fire in a cave. How was she to ask him to travel with her? It would be safer for both in the end…
“You will come with me.” She didn’t really give him much of a choice. Though he could always say no, since for all she knew he was going to take to the skies again or have plans.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu May 29, 2014 2:20 am
Lazarus nodded, unsure how else he was supposed to reply. When he saw he’d mirrored his companion’s gesture, he couldn’t help but smile. The act itself was small, but it did much to remind him that they were both soquili – nothing more and nothing less – and that, perhaps, he needn’t be so afraid.
“Fire?” The warmth and light it offered were like apples: sweet and tempting to take, especially at a time like this. His mother would be waiting for him, and he’d never spent a night away from her since she’d found him, but he was so tired, and the sun had taken the winds with it when it left. Even if he walked for hours, he did not think he could reach her before dawn. It would be safer, he told himself, if he rested in the caves with fire – but not if he was alone. Did the mare intend to go as well? Or was his fatigue so obvious that she’d taken pity on him?
She answered before he could ask, her words and tone brooking no argument. It was a good thing, then, that he’d no intention of doing so.
“O-okay!” he agreed, with an enthusiasm most would not share had a near-stranger demanded them to follow. But dangers were more like to lurk in shadow than in light, and he could not bring himself to mistrust one who’d take him to fire. “My name’s Lazarus.”
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu May 29, 2014 2:20 am
LunaRei_SilverBlood The mare waited only a moment before she lead the stallion back onto the main path. They would follow this to the first split, it was an easy walk for the night. It was going to be a clear night at least, no real wind so yeah it was chilly, but not as cold as if the snows had come. This was a good time for the travelling to happen. Any predators would be looking for something easier to kill and eat then two fully grown horses.
“Let me see your wings again.” Now they were in the light. “The goddess has blessed us with a clear night.” Her voice was almost stoic as she spoke and she didn’t even wait much for him to display his wings again before she touched them lightly with her horn. She had limited healing ability. No matter how hard she tried, not being a pure unicorn has made it tough. But with the touch of her horn a small glowing white light appears and the stallion for feel the ache of his wings fade away. They would still be tired and to weak for flight, but they wouldn’t hurt.
Giving him a few moments to himself she walked few steps forward. She pulled out the map, at that split they’ll go on for another few hours. “We’ll arrive at the cave and fire late after noon tomorrow. Move it.” She chided at him and then without waiting to see if he came along, she started walking.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2014 11:55 pm
Lazarus waited for a name, but none seemed forthcoming. Instead she turned and led him through a path, and the nuances of social etiquette were so foreign to him that he feared to ask. But in the end, what was a name but something to call another by? He would not need it to speak to her, describer her, or remember her. Yet he wished to know it all the same.
“M-my wings?” He was confused, but he complied immediately out of habit. He held his wings aloft for her, hoping she wouldn’t see the minute trembles that betrayed his weakness, and hoping more that she wouldn’t mistake it for fear. It was true her horn looked sharp and wicked, but his mother had horns, too, and so did he. Many had thought him dangerous for it, and he didn’t want her to go through the same.
“It stopped hurting!” he said once she had stepped away, bursting into a grin. He gave an experimental flap, but though he felt a dull weight and understood his wings were still sore from his flight, they no longer pained him.
“Thank you!” he called, nearly tripping in his efforts to catch up with her. Despite the chiding and the prospect of walking for so long, his tail gave a pleasant wave and he could not seem to help but smile. It was true his new companion spoke much less warmly than his mother did, and she did not seem as open, but she was kind and gentle, and her frankness was refreshing to hear. “How did you do it? A-and is the cave your home?”
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2014 11:55 pm
LunaRei_SilverBlood “The cave, this one, is not. This cave belongs to a herd I am going to join.” Crusnik stated as she glanced her silver eyes over to him. He was an odd mix or colors and even breeds, but in the end he was probably stronger that way. “I do live in a cave. Well, did with my family. But the Goddess has spoken to me and I am to follow this path.” She lead them down the path, she kept a decent pace going hoping to cover a fair amount of ground. As the sun sank and the night sky woke up. It caused Crusnik to feel more at ease, something about how she seemed to blend into the sky helped her feel more… Well, unnoticeable.
“Stallion, you are not familiar with this area, correct?” The mare watched the paths start to diverge into different directions. The young mare was confident in her directions. But she didn’t know the horses that resided in the territories that they would be crossing. This would make it a little harder now that she thought about it… But she had faith! “What is your home like?”
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2014 11:55 pm
A herd! That was infinitely less awkward than her home, though it came with its own set of troubles. He had never been in a large group, for one thing – he could barely communicate enough as it was without stumbling over his own words. For another, what would they be like? Who was this Goddess and what did she say to convince the mare to go? Why was he being taken there? The questions were on the tip of his tongue, but the thing about detachment was that the he knew neither how to read the mare nor how he was being read. The questions he’d already asked may have been trying on her patience. He couldn’t tell, and was not sure if a new onslaught of questions would be received poorly. Ah, he was curious to be sure, but the risk was too great: he feared being alone more than he feared following her into her into herd lands.
Thus, his thoughts went unvoiced and unheard, as the silence settled between them like a cloud. It was not uncomfortable by any stretch of the imagination, however. This was his first time meeting a stranger on his own, and it gave new light to things once thought familiar. The night sky had always been beautiful to him, and now it was even more so, tied as it was to the soft blue markings on her back, splashed with pinpoints of white that could be taken for stars. She may have thought it made her blend in, but to him it was just the opposite: that she was here, with him, when it looked as if she should be part of the sky itself made her as apparent as a lone flower in a desert – and just as beautiful.
Without conscious thought, his strides lengthened, so that he was almost beside her rather than behind. They were so close they could touch, if only he stretched out his wings, and—
‘Stallion, you are not familiar with this area, correct?’
He drew back like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar, tempered by both the suddenness of her speech and the unfamiliarity implied in the word she called him by.
“Um, yes! It—it’s my first time here,” he said, recovering himself enough to fall back behind her. “I live in a clearing, with just a few trees here and there, and forests close by. Uh. No caves.”
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2014 11:55 pm
LunaRei_SilverBlood So the stallion was in the same boat, so to speak, as her. She wasn’t familiar with the lands they would be crossing, but she had faith in what the Goddess had planned for her. So she listened to the tidbit that he said about where he was from. “A clearing.” She stated and then glanced to the side and back to look at him. “A good place for those with wings.” She nodded in approval. It was the logical and rational answer and those kinds of things made sense to Crusnik. It was other things like when a horse talked about feelings that she felt baffled about the whole thing.
“Open spaces intimidate me. I was raised in a cave. I hope to get over this fear very soon.” She would need to, to be part of this Eterna Fiamma. Especially if she was to travel the lands… The future seemed daunting but she knew everything happened for a reason. She pushed on, leading them into the night and the forests. Everything seemed to quiet down when the sun went down. It was kind of sad that no one seemed to enjoy the night as much as they did the day. Her pace slowed though, to walk next to the stallion. She wanted to walk -with- someone once in a while. It’s not like she was their leader or anything.
His coloring was very different from those she normally saw. The reds he had where very different from the more natural hues she was use too. Maybe where he came from it was a defense technique? The mare had no idea that he wasn’t from all that far away but for those that don’t get out much… It might seem like they’re from another planet sometimes. She was starting to realize she kind of enjoyed his company.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
