"Lan Yan!"
Oh where was that bird...it wasn't like her to just disappear when they were so close to completing an order. Angara frowned as she wandered the forests of the West shouting for her avian companion. The beads around her paws his one another, echoing a soft wood against wood sound. The sound didn't travel far though.
"Honestly...We were so close, so close to finishing Duke Jilie's order and then suddenly she flies off screeching about some perfect thing to add to it..."
Suddenly a nearly identical bird to her own pelt came swooping below the canopy, flying around the lioness' head quickly, squawking about something rather insistently. "Come, come, come on, follow me!" The bird yelled at her, her beak clicking loudly.
"Lan Yan!"
Before she could even say anything, the bird was gone once again. The frown on her face got worse as she tried to follow the fading sound of her companion's voice. This was so unlike the usually helpful bird. Part of her was worried about why there was a suddenly change in behavior, the other part of her felt as though she was a curious cub following a mischievous hare into a hole.
As she broke into a small clearing, she could hear the sound of Lan Yan's voice getting louder and louder until she could see the identical bird flying around what looked to be a gnarled, ancient tree. Angara's mouth fell open as she slowed her approach. So this was what Lan Yan was so intent on showing her. It was...well, beautiful to say the least.
Proudly the small bird came down, her wings flapping quickly in excitement as she circled around the head of the lioness she helped before finally coming in for a landing on the shoulder of Angara. "See, see. This is why I needed you to follow me."
"It's pretty and all, but honestly Lan Yan. We have a very important order coming from a Duke! That's more important than any tree in these forests." While the sight was amazing, she had to scold the bird. There was no time for slacking and she really did need her winged friend's help with the final touches!
"You don't understand." Lan Yan protested, taking to the sky again. She landed quickly on the tree's branches, staring down at Angara with angry blue eyes. "I've seen gods come here. Maybe we can get one of them to bless this trinket. The one for the Duke's bride. I hear they can give some of themselves as a gift, a tangible blessing, like a feather. It's magical." Or some of the other birds of the West had told her during one of their morning gossip exchange.
Gods?! Well that certainly would make things interesting and would maybe help her gain a little popularity within the higher class if she produced goods blessed by the gods themselves. "Hm..." But was it worth putting off Duke Jilie's commission for a chance to have it blessed by some god she had no idea if they would come back and if they did, would they even listen to the request of some lowly artisan? "That's all great Lan Yan, but we need to get back to work." She saw the bird's gaze drop quickly, her wings sinking with it. "Buuut, once we're done, if we have time, we can come back and see if we can find a god here." Angara quickly added, grinning up at her companion.
"Yes, yes, good." Her chest feathers puffed up with pride as Lan Yan smiled as much as her beak would allow. She had done good, but she had costed her friend precious time that could have been spent working on the Duke's commission. It was a very special gift after all, for a bride in the Pridelands. They only had the bare basics to work with; colors, minimalistic style, necklace. Everything else was completely up to her and Angara to figure out. It was a challenge, especially considering this was their very first commission. They both knew this could make or break their reputation within the artisans of the West.
Maybe some day they'd clothe the Emperor and Empress themselves one day. That was what Angara dreamed of doing, but that dream was a long ways off. "Come on Lan Yan, we should probably get back. We still have beads that need to be strung and details to put on the leather necklace." There was some metal, but it was expensive and the just starting artisan had very little to trade with to get the other materials she would have liked to put into this piece. If she had her way, it would have been made from gold, with rubies set inches apart with a large center stone made of a clear crystal so when the light hit it, it would cause a rainbow to appear...
"Angara...ANGARA!"
The loud croaking in her ears caused the lioness to shake back into reality. With a swat of her paw, the bird that flapped so close to her face hit the ground with a loud thud. Quickly Angara's ears went back as she lowered herself to the ground. "Oh my gods, Lan Yan I'm sorry. You scared me! Are you okay? Say something!"
The reply she got was not one she wanted. The little cream beak turned quickly, biting Angara's nose. She held on for a few seconds as the lioness reared back, roaring in pain before letting go. "Serves you right, hitting me like that! And here I was going to tell you a secret I heard this morning while looking for my breakfast."
"Uuugh, I said I was sorry Lan Yaaan." The artisan groaned a paw rubbing against her sore nose. That was going to hurt, maybe even leave a mark at some point. "Come on...lets go back and finish the necklace for Duke Jilie's bride." Recovering from the bite, Angara turned to head back to her den where everything she owned resided.
"Fine, fine~" With a flap of her wings, the small bird was back in the air, flying slowly above Angara. "So you don't want to know what I heard this morning?"
"Okay, fine, tell me. What did you hear?" It was probably just something silly, like an ibex getting stuck on a ledge, or a lioness stuck in a tree.
"Apparently Duke Jilie was attacked by some rogue that no one had ever seen before." Of course Lan Yan said that way too flatly for the heaviness of her words.
"WHAT?!"
Angara came to a sudden stop, staring up at the bird in disbelief. "What happened?" She asked, as if the bird knew everything there was to know about everything. Lan Yan had to know more. She listened to everything anyone said, that's why no one liked talking to Angara.
"I don't know. The family is keeping it hush-hush, but I do know a guard from the North stopped them and saved the Duke. They were all wounded from what I heard."
"Well we have to go help!" She wasn't even listening to herself at this point. What would she even do? She was no apothecary, no healer, no guard, no higher up. What good would she do if she bothered him? Angara didn't care. Her paws shifted as she dashed off towards the royal's den with Lan Yan flying behind her, trying to keep up.
[word count: 1244]