Too Much Work (Hermit)

[Aidara]

Time: 12th of Summer, 511 AV Place: Wind Reach and the surrounding area It was one of those rare times of the morning, before the sun had completely risen above the mountains, when one could just sit and relax. There was a sleepy hush over the city, leaving those who were up this early with the feeling that they should be whispering and tip-toeing around rather than break the beautiful silence. For silence was hard to find within any city; so when it appeared, it was cherished. That is how Aidara found herself strolling along the hallways that lead to the different Endal living quarters; she refused to begin her work so early and ruin the quiet. Her path was aimless, her feet carrying her down the well-worn stone corridors with an ease that came only from years of the same action. Of course, Addy had grown up here and knew the city by heart. Though it had been a while since she had time to stroll, the small woman had seen many a morning break over the mountain peaks. Not this morning however, for she had another idea in mind. So with quiet footfalls, Addy angled her path away from the cliffs and towards the city walls. From morning to evening, Addy’s days were consumed by work. While it was tiring, no one could say the woman didn’t love it. Within days of her bonding with Sira, Addy had transformed from a social butterfly to a busy bee. The small woman, fiery of hair and personality, could be seen flitting all over the city on any given day. From her Endal duties of protecting the city and its citizens as well as enforcing the laws, to the Infirmary where she had a large amount of power in her small grasp, Addy hardly had any time left for herself. Sure, things were usually slow in the Infirmary, and those night watches were so dull that it left both she and Sira nearly mad with boredom come sunrise, but the freedom to do whatever she pleased was gone. And she felt that loss sorely. Losing free time for the gain of two of her lifes aspirations was not a bad deal at all. However, the healer was made weary by the constant reminder that while she was no novice with herbalistic medicines, her natural gift from Rek’keli was far from progressed. Though she was marked from birth Addy still had only the one mark, and that left her skills secondary to even the assistant healers she was in charge of. The thought stung and she did her best to ignore the subject. Though the entire city worshiped Priskil, Addy found herself lost when she thought of how to further devote herself to the Goddess of healing. It was as she attempted to avoid those painful thoughts that Addy remembered her other favorite, and majorly neglected, past time: Falconry. It was how this all started, after all. Her love of the raptors transferred to her passion for the Wind Eagles as a Yasi. Dissuaded from being an Endal, she had instead turned to the hawks, falcons and owls that were kept within the city. In the gatehouse, to be exact, and this was her destination. Past the Valintar and through the windy corridors, she came upon the elevator that would lift her into the gate keeper’s domain. Addy knocked twice on the side of the elevator as she rose, alerting the retired Endal who kept the gate of her arrival. “Val! Guess who!” Stepping off the lift, Addy knocked the side again to let the Dek below know it was safe to bring the elevator back down. Val’s living quarters were dark; the natural light not having filled the rooms yet. But Addy had been there enough times to know her way in the dark. She found Val’s bed empty, as well as the perches and the nests. “Val, its Addy. Where are you, old man?”Stepping around the corner and into the new sunlight, the healer had to shield her eyes. Val was there, of course, in his chair overlooking the gate. Leather gloves were laid beside him, as well as a pile of hoods. He was watching the sky, where his raptors were soaring high and far, until they were only black dots. “I thought you had forgotten this old man.” The gentle, crackily-like-old-leather voice was a sound she had missed, and instantly brought a smile to her lips. Bending down, Addy wrapped her arms tightly around Val’s shoulders. “Never! You know right well that I have double duty. We don’t all have time for hobbies” Her tone was teasing, but there was a slightly sad note that lingered in her voice. “Some of us are just lucky enough for our hobby to be the work we love. Is that not the same for you? Artemis misses you. I’ve assigned him to another falconer-hopeful.” Addy had expected this, but never the less she felt a pang of jealousy. Artemis was the first bird Val had allowed her to help break; he was special to her, though she had always known this time would come. She had always known he was not hers. “I’m sure he is being treated well. I am not worried. But I do miss the birds. Would that I could have one of my own.” “You do, don’t you? Pretty kelvic woman, I hear.” Blue eyes crinkled in a smile and Val reached up to gently pat the hand Addy had laid on his shoulder. “I know what you mean, lass. Do not fret. Did you ever think of taking time especially for your hobby? All work never did anyone any good. At the pace you’re going, I wouldn’t be surprised to hear you’d burnt out before the next snowfall.” She knew he was right, and her silence said this louder than any works. Val nodded knowingly, gave her hand another pat and looked back over the mountain tops. “I love my duty. I’m helping people, Val. And I have no time. Either I’m in the infirmary, sleeping, eating or on watch with Sira. None of this leaves time to train a raptor.” One would have expected her tone to have turned bitter, but it had not. Addy’s green eyes had followed Val’s gaze, and she was watching the sky thoughtfully. “You mean those dreadful, long, boring night watches you and Sira seem to get stuck with? I’ve heard many complaining about them, or else estatic that you two had once again saved them from said watch. No, you’re right. You have no time what so ever to train.” Barely containing a laugh, Val suddenly stood and put his fingers to his lips. A shrill whistle was blown; once, twice. The dots that were his birds had spread out too far from each other for his liking, but the whistle had brought them back together. He was only letting them out to fly, and didn’t want them to stray too far. “Val, don’t joke with me. You know it’s difficult to fly a hawk or falcon at night. That’s just asking for trouble.” “Did I say hawk or falcon? Use your head girl. I’m surprised you hadn’t thought of this already to begin with. After all the time you spent here, and your self-proclaimed love for these animals, have you not tried to figure out a way to make it work at all? Think, lass, think.” Standing, Val left Addy on the lookout as he went to get himself a little bit of breakfast. Flopping down into the vacated chair, Addy rested her elbows on her knees, her chin in her hands. Of course she had known what Val was talking about. Owls were perfect night time hunters, but the gatekeeper had none that he could bestow upon her as a gift, so what was she supposed to do. Perhaps it was because she was thinking too hard, or because it was too early in the morning, but it took an awful long time for Addy to realize what she had to do. When the thought finally occurred to her, she couldn’t help to smile. Even her mental voice was cheery when she called out to her love. “Sira. Come to the gatehouse as quickly as you can. We’re going to get me a bird.”

[Aidara]

By the time Val returned to the ledge with fruit in hand for both he and Addy, the woman was pacing back and forth anxiously. Small hands twiddled absently with the end of her braid, flicking the hairs back and forth between her fingers; the fiery locks that had hung loose upon her arrival were now twisted into an intricate plait that fell well below her shoulder blades. It was another clear sign of her bottled energy. Green eyes lit and the pacing stopped when Val stepped from the shadows, silently offering the woman one of the fruits he carried, his brow raised as he accessed Addy and her fraying nerves. "I'm going to guess that you have come up with an... idea." The laughter in the old mans voice was barely contained, but Addy didn't seem to notice. Opting to decline a response at first, instead biting down into the fruit she held, not even taking the time to look at what she was eating. The skin broke beneath her teeth with a crisp snap, the meat beneath parting easily from the core as an ample amount of juice gushed down onto her chin. "Mmmmph, I did. Sira will be here soon. Do you have more of these?" The half eaten fruit was waved a bit before she brought it back to her lips; the juicy melon didn't stand a chance against Addy's anxiety as well as her always ravenous appetite. For how much the girl ate, it was a surprise she wasn't ten times her size. It was because she never sat in one place for long that allowed her to keep her petite, lithe, and rather luscious form. "Unfortunately I did not plan for your arrival. Had I known you were coming, I would have grabbed twice as much as I did when I visited the kitchens last. You may have mine. No, no, take it." Addy had started to protest, but Val tossed the fruit towards her anyway. The finished core of the first tumbled over the edge of the cliff as the small woman reached for, and caught, the second. This one was bit into with even more enthusiasm than the first. Even with all the juices, Addy's clothes somehow managed to stay spotless. "Thank you. Sira will be here soon. I'm going to have her take me down into the forests." Another big bite left Addy indicating where she meant with a toss of her head. Behind her, where Val's birds had disappeared, was a vast expanse of trees. They seemed to go on forever, disappearing into the horizon but it was just an illusion. Just beyond what one was able to see with their naked eye was Thunder Bay. Hopefully Addy wouldn't have to go that far. She hadn't grabbed any kind of gear for camping. Grab the camping stuff. Really? Cause I'm almost there. I might need it. Hurry! Fine. But I have to turn around now. Keep your pants on, I'll be there soon. Her imatience and excitment was building to a level that was making it hard for Addy to contain. Though she no longer paced, she was unaware of the way she had started to bounce on the balls of her feet, glancing back and forth between the open sky and the forest below. Hearing the irritation in Sira's voice made Addy realize that she was really being a pain. Loooove you! Making her voice sugary sweet, the little healer could almost hear her mate smile. No damage done. Half a bell passed and Sira still hadn't arrived. By now Addy had seated herself on the rock next to Val's chair, the two of them each watching the sky, but for differen't reasons. The sun had fully risen now, and Addy streched out her legs to catch some of the early morning rays. "Calm, lass. She'll be here soon. You still haven't told me your plan, either." The prompt was gentle, and Addy leaned back on her elbows, tilting her face to the sun and closing her eyes before she responded. "Well obviously you meant owls. So, I'm going to go out and try and catch an owl. By myself. Sira will fly me there and then probably head back to our aerie. I really want to try this on my own." One green eye opened and squinted up at the old man. He looked thoughtful, and was still staring off in the distance. The little lines at the corners of his mouth were curving the wrong way to be the beginning of a smile. Val didn't understand her hesitation to bring her bondmate. "Sira can talk to the birds. She doesn't like to, because it's like talking to a dek, but she can. It wouldn't be the same if she convinced one to come with me." He was nodding slowly now in agreement and understanding as Addy turned her face to the sun and trying to relax while she waited. Without warning there was a heavy thud next to her head. Sitting bolt upright and rubbing her eyes, Addy looked wildly around. She must have fallen asleep. The wind had pulled strands of hair free from her braid, and these whipped across her face as the wind buffeted her. Glancing upwards, the source of the winds was quickly evident. Sira hovered above her, flapping her enormous wings in order to keep herself air born. Scrambling to her feet Addy quickly shouldered the pack that Sira had dropped before bending to give Val a quick hug and a kiss on his cheek. He was grinning at her and shooing her away when she stood back upright and starting to make introductions. "There is time enough for that later. Go, she's waiting!" With a laugh, Addy squeezed his shoulder and turned towards Sira. "Well, you know, I can't fly. So if you expect me to ride you, you're going to have to land." Pain in my ass. Sira teased, lightly clipping the top of Addy's head with the tips of her feathers as she settled down onto the ledge. Shifting from foot to foot and ruffling her wings so that they folded just right, the kelvic tilted her head to the side, one massive eye fixated upon the saddle she had also dropped onto the stone. "Val, if you think that some of your birds are finicky...you haven't seen anything yet." Sira's gaze had not left the saddle as the little woman hoisted it onto her shoulder and began readying to place it onto her back. Addy could feel Sira's unease and anticipation as she settled the bulky leather thing on her feathered back...only to have it slide off the other side as Sira quickly dropped her wing and shifted her claws. Sorry. Addy was already expecting this, however, and had just barely made it around Sira before the saddle was to hit the ground. With her small stature, catching the full weight of the falling saddle brought Addy to her knees. "Next time, we're going to sedate you first." She grumbled as she tossed the contraption back onto Sira's back. By the time Sira was saddled and ready, shifting under the gear and making her lack of comfort well known with squawks and mental curses, Addy was panting and Val was laughing. "That was worth sticking around to see. Good luck, girl. I'll be here when you return." Wiping laughter tears from his cheeks and still chuckling, Val rose creakily from his chair and retreated back inside. With the ease of much practice, Addy scampered up Sira's dusky golden side, plomping down into the saddle with little grace. "Alright your Highness. Let's go." Shaking herself from head to foot just to jar Addy around, Sira simply hopped forward off the ledge, plummeting for a few hundred feet before her great wings snapped open, pulling the pair up just in time. They skimmed right above the trees towards the rising sun, both of the women just enjoying the cool air, the view, and the company before they got down to business.

[Flicker]

For long sweeping passes the duo enjoyed their morning flight, enjoying the songs of flittering skylarks and soaking up Syna’s buttery rays. Beneath, dusty ridges and dried vegetation faded into sharp, swaying pine trees. The glittering expanse of diamond crusted ocean shrank as the pair dropped lower to follow the valleys and foothills, Sira’s sharp eyes picking up on the constant hustle of small mammals and bugs amidst the rich alpine ecosystem. Meadows and glades appeared from the cool depths of dark needles with astonishing abruptness. With no indication of any prior interest in landing, the agile Wind Eagle banked sharply and skittered across the log littered grass. Sira urged her Inarta to disembark, a strange inattention but complete comfort surrounding their discourse. She offered no answers to the expected questions, just pressed her lover to gather her gear and assured her that she’d be just fine starting her search here. Once assured that the healer had everything she needed waiting at her feet, the Eagle blew her an air kiss and took to flight again. A few sun bleached, barkless logs lay scattered among the thick, tall tufts of hardy grass swaying at Aidara’s hips. This particular glade was about a day’s walk from the ocean, two days from Mt. Skyinarta, and deathly still aside from various avian specimens perched in the surrounding trees and the bugs providing their meals. Abandoned, however kindly, Aidara would, if she stayed for any amount of time in the glade, hear the sound of a lyrical voice, in possession of just as much avian song as any Inarta speaking Nari, ringing through the trees and faintly reaching her location. The voice grew louder, singing in short, anxious bursts, as the healer approached, however stealthily or boldly she chose. Just as she passed through enough trees to think to open a line of sight to the stranger, the pines thinning enough that the birds no longer chirped constantly over her head, the voice failed to start up again. The Endal would see, however, the small glen he’d been in, grass laid down if she paid enough attention and could differentiate between human marks and animal. There on the outskirts, to the East, a small bundle of deer skin shivered and stilled. And once Aidara gathered the courage, if she ever did before nightfall, the thing was swathed around a little baby owl with a broken wing.

[Aidara]

Yes, she did feel abandoned. With a hand raised to her eyes to shield from the sun, Addy watched Sira flap away into the distance, back towards the mountain. Well, that settled it then. She had been wondering where she was going to go to achieve her spontaneous goal, and it seemed Sira saved her the problem of making a decision. Maybe Sira had spoken to the birds around them, and knew something that the healer did not. Addy severly doubted this, though, as Sira didn't really enjoy conversations with the song birds or small raptors; it was about as enjoyable as an Endal found talking to a Dek was. Still... the thought that Addy could be beginning this adventure in what she thought was a cheating way put a sour taste in her mouth. Swallowing to rid her palate of the taste, Addy hiked all the gear up onto her back and turned in a circle, deciding to try and start this whole ordeal out on the right foot. The idea had seemed like a brilliant one at first; Go into the forest, find a bird, catch it, bring it home, and train it as her own! Now, in the middle of nowhere and alone, with no idea where to start... the task seemed almost impossible. The difficulty of the task was good for the woman, however, who did almost everything of importance with a member of her family; she was almost never alone, and it was an intentional decision. She hated being alone. It was another reason why so many had frequented her bed. Spinning in a circle, Addy first took in her surroundings. While Sira had landed them in an open area full of tall grasses, there was a line of trees that encircled the meadow not more than fifty paces away. Deciding that nothing would be accomplished just standing, Addy turned towards the nearest edge of the woods and began to trudge through the grass. It was surprisingly slow going. With the green stalks of tough grass swaying at her waist, more often than not a persistent clump of the stuff would get tangled between the woman's legs, tripping her up a bit as she flounced across the glade. Also hidden among the grasses were rabbit and snake holes, big for Addy's foot to catch, and sometimes deep enough for her to fall in to her knee. This she did twice, stumbling as she tried to move forward, her foot sinking into the hole and sending her sprawling onto her face. With the danger of a broken or twisted ankle aside, it was not a good idea to stick ones foot into a snakes home while the snake was there. By the second fall, Addy had realized what she was tripping over and slowed her pace to a meandering walk, her eyes glued to the small spaces between the grass stalks. With the sun beating down upon her back, Addy realized as she wiped sweat from her brow, that she should have reached the shelter of the trees by now. Glancing up, she sighed in frustration; she had been so caught up in looking at her feet that she simply walked the primiter of the glade. Taking a sharp left, Addy began her second attempt at reaching the tree lines. At this point, the woman was glad that there was no one else around to see. How embarrassing was it to get lost in a circle. It was as the cool kiss of the tree's shade touched her face that Addy heard it: A distant, yet piercing song. It sounded like an animal, but she couldn't be sure. Stopping all movement to listen, she took a moment to try and determine whether or not the animal/person was hurt or in pain. The song wasn't shrill or frantic, so Addy decided that there was no rush; the last thing she needed was to be pelting through the forest and get close-lined by a low hanging branch. So Addy set forth at a decent clip, shouldering through the shrubs and deadwood, and was soon swallowed by the wilderness. There wasn't any kind of game trail near her chosen path, so Addy walked along with her head bobbing up and down as she kept checking between the ground and sky, trying to watch for roots and branches all at once. It made for a funny spectacle, if anyone was around to see, but it worked. More than once she had to stop and listen for the song and readjust her direction before continuing on. Luckily enough for her, Addy was semi-comfortable in the forest. After her disastrous hunt a few seasons ago, she always prepared herself for the worse, though he recent camping trip with Sira put most of the healers fears to rest, teaching her a valuable lesson: Not everything had to end badly in an unfamiliar situation. So, with the sting of Sira's abandonment almost nonexistent, Addy continued her trudge towards the mysterious noise with optimism and high spirits. She knew the second glade was near when the pines began to thin. It wasn't nearly as hard to push her way through the brush and past the trees here, as most of the entangling limbs had dispersed. Upon reaching this point, the song stopped, making Addy stop. Was she close? Did she scare it- whatever it was - off? "Hello?" Another step forward and the healer leaned around a tree, suddenly wary now that she didn't have the pretty song to lead her forward. She felt suddenly foolish; they'd all be told the story of the flutist who made all the creatures of the forest do his will just by playing the instrument. Addy abruptly felt suspicious. Was she being tricked? "Hello..? Is anyone there?" A little louder this time as she finally stepped into the glade. There was a rustle across the expanse of grass, but then there was nothing. Even the birds in the trees were silent. But there! In the shadows... what was that? "Don't be scared...I'm just going to come over and see you.." Trying to keep her voice steady and calming, Addy moved as quickly as she dared towards where she saw the movement. Stepping into the shadows again, Addy allowed her eyes to adjust before she noticed the pile of skins on the ground. Immediately repulsed, she started to back away, diverting her eyes. But she couldn't help but look back up...the furs were moving. Quickly, she knelt down into the grass and dirt, gingerly picking up the top skin and tossing it aside. With a startled gasp, Addy fell back on her rump. "Oh no! You poor, poor thing!" Cooing, but unsure whether she should pick it up or not, Addy instead leaned over the little owl. It's left wing was held stiffly out at it's side, the angle hinting at a break. "But you're only a baby! Who would do such a thing." Anything that was hungry, she silently thought, but tried to ignore that part of her mind. The coinsidence didn't slip past the healer. She had wanted an owl, came out here searching for an owl...and here was a baby, just ready to be taken as her own. But something didn't feel right. It was hurt and alone, perhaps fallen from it's nest. Tilting her head back, Addy searched the trees above for some kind of nest in the branches or the trunk it's self, but found nothing. That left only one thing she could do: help it. As carefully as she could, Addy reached forward and cupped her hands around under the broken bird, taking the deer skin it sat on into her lap as she tucked her legs up into a cross-legged position. "Shhh, shhh little one..." The fledgling had begun to squawk, frightened now that the healer moved it. "Shhhh... I'm only trying to help..." What she would give to have Sira here now. "Man, you have some lungs on you." This was going to prove difficult. The meditative calm that Addy had to achieve before she could use her gift was a delicate process; she found it very hard to tuck away the conscious parts of her mind. The loud screeches of the frightened and hurt bird only made it worse. But still, she persisted. It took almost half a bell before that soft, calm blanket shrouded her awareness and gave her access to her gift. Reaching for it, Addy drew her power easily. She had much practice wielding her healing gift lately, and it came readily to her mental grasp. Gently, ever so gently, Addy laid a hand on the owlettes wing, forcing the golden healing thread of power into the hollow bone of it's wing. She sped quickly along with the blood and marrow, looking for the problem. She found it quickly. All at once, there was no movement. The marrow had no where to go, the major wing bone was definitely damaged. Probing a little further, Addy was able to determine that it was only a hairline fracture. It was better than a completely broken bone, but still beyond her skill level. This wasn't good. At the last minute, Addy took a scope of the surrounding tissue and muscles. There was a slight pooling of blood on the underside of the wing, but that only took moments for the healer to deal with, moving the blood cells back into the veins and capillaries, carefully sealing the walls of each respectively. Luckily for the owlette there were no torn muscles or tendons surrounding the break. While Addy could have easily mended those as well, it would have extended the healing process for the little bird. "Oh boy." Came the sigh, as she pulled herself back to the real world. The bird was still squawking, and Addy didn't know what to do about it. She couldn't heal a broken bone, not with only one mark. The best she could do was splint the wing until...until she could find another alternative. Whether Addy made the decision consciously or not, she had decided at that moment that she was going to do whatever she could save the little bird. Setting the skin and the baby owl down onto the grass, Addy started to look around for anything she could use as a splint. The fledglings wing was tiny and fragile, automatically making most of the twigs she found useless. She needed something just as tiny and light, while being sturdy enough to hold the wing in place until she could get back to the Infirmary. Inspiration struck her as she tripped over a protruding root, sprawling headlong into a nearby tree. Fingers scrabbled at the bark as she tried to keep her balance, taking away small chunks with her fingers. When she stood and saw the bark shavings in her hand, a slow smile crept across her lips. The bark was like that of a birch tree: light, curly and thin. Scraping a few more pieces from the trunk for good measure, Addy was soon kneeling down next to the pile of furs, gently trying to get the baby bird to extend his wind so that she could wrap the bark around it. The job was quick and relatively painless, though one never would have guessed by sheer pitch the squawking had reached. The curly bark had also solved Addys problem of finding a binding material to hold the splint in place; it wasn't perfect or very protective, and looked in danger of just slipping right back off the wing...but it was the best she could do with what she had.

[Flicker]

“I know, I know, that splint’s feeble, But to kill the youngling would be evil. Hush thy tongue, keeper of the night, ‘Fore she see that we be in sight,” a hulking, dark shape hunkered down amidst the alpine foliage crooned to his sulking companion, convincing the unhappy mother to quiet. He watched the healer’s work with discerning eye, though with less wariness than circumstances seemed to suggest. Allowing a strange woman the opportunity to harm or hurt his littlest companion should not have allowed such placid observation. The shape, lost in the shadows that followed the whims of the breeze-led trees, stayed just on the hidden side of indiscernible to the healer. She patched up the little guy as best she could, well aware of the shoddy end product, but that answered not how it came to rest within tanned hides in the middle of Inartan territory. As Syna moved on, and Aidara went about whatever it was that she would do in these circumstances, he shadowed whatever it be, waiting and watching. His companion, one of many, but the one most interested in the proceedings, stayed at his side but couldn’t quietly observe as he did. “Shush now, hush at once. You see she’s not a dunce. There it is, a tender touch, Up against the hurtful crutch, A care so mild, a love so meek, A perfect match with your beak.”

[Aidara]

Addy was just getting the little owelette situated when she heard it...the desperate cries of a mother. Well, that's what she assumed anyway. Immediately, Addy's eyes went to the trees above her, looking for any kind of nest that this little one could have fallen from; the fractured wing gave enough evidence to some kind of fall or mishap. But there was no nest to be seen, as Addy should have expected if she had taken into consideration the pile of furs. It was very unlikely, if not impossible, that a baby owl would fall out of it's nest onto a perfectly placed pile of life-saving-furs. "Where is your mama, huh? Is that her crying for you?" The fledgling had gone quiet for a time as Addy applied her shoddy splint, perhaps worn out from it's constant crying. But the distant calls of the mother owl was quickly drowned out by the renewed shrieks of the lost baby in her arms. For a while the healer just sat there, unaware of her silent watcher hidden in the trees, trying to calm the bird while she thought of something to do. She had never dealt with a baby bird before, let alone a hurt one. All of Val's birds, even the newly caught ones, had already learned how to fly. Addy was keenly aware that often times, once a mother bird smelled human on it's baby, the chick was abandoned; she hadn't been thinking about that when she originally picked the owl up for inspection. "Well, petch." She muttered, casting her gaze around the surrounding forest as if the trees would suddenly shout the answer she was looking for. If the mother was waiting in the branches just beyond her view, should Addy leave the chick and hope it was accepted by it's mother? Should she take it with her and....walk back to wind reach? No, that was silly. But the furs.... With all the problem solving skills that she possessed, Addy decided that this bird had to have belonged to someone, to have been cared for by somebody. Had her approach scared them off? Well, she had to do something. Raising from where she sat onto her knees, Addy carefully shuffled the few feet back to the pile of furs. Carefully, she set the owl back down, fluffing up the edges of the makeshift nest to hide it from view and keep it from tumbling out. Listening carefully, she then tired to pinpoint where the cry was coming from. Maybe if she could locate the mother, she could figure out what to do with the baby. There! The soft keening sound was somewhere behind her, in the trees to the south of where she stood. It was easy going until Addy stepped into the treeline, her first footfall landing on a dried twig with a stupidly loud snap. She immediately froze, but the cry she was following quickly cut off. Addy really wasn't made for this stalking thing. But still she stood waiting patiently for the threat to be forgotten and the mother to cry once more. And a few minutes later, she heard it..but to the east. Why was it moving? So, she adjusted her direction, and with better care for what she put her feet down on, Addy carefully started working her way through the trees. Slowly but surely the healer found herself getting closer to the calls, which were becoming less frequent with every move she made. By the time the cries stopped all together, Addy was in the middle of a thicket, surrounded by thorns and with no idea which way she had originally came. Willing herself not to get frustrated, choking down the swears of annoyance that danced on the tip of her tongue, Addy stopped, closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. She needed to think. Maybe chasing the cry was a bad idea after all. It was a bird, and it could fly and easily avoid her every attempt. It wasn't as if she was a pro at this catching birds thing. So, now she needed a different tactic. The pile of properly cured, clean, rather fresh furs kept popping to the front of her mind. For a while, she ignored them, pushing the thought away as she tried to figure out where the baby came from. It was honestly the feeling of utter helplessness that started to sink it's awful fingers in Addy's mind that kept her from seeing the clear answer. "The furs!" She called out finally, slapping the palm of her hand against her forehead and startling a jay that had perched over head into flight. Deer didn't just kindly shed their skin and lay them in pretty piles in the forest so that other animals had a comfortable place to sleep. Humans took the pelts and cured them so that they were usable. Laughing out loud at her own stupidity, Addy retraced her steps back to where she had found the chick. It was still there, it's big buggy eyes peering over the edge of the furs when she approached. Upon seeing her, it set off in a squawking fit again and Addy rolled her eyes. This time, the entire pile of furs were gathered into her arms, bird nestled in the very center. It was awkward to hold, stretching her short arms to their carrying capacity. This time when Addy set off for the edge of the trees, she was looking for any kind of well worn path or game trail that lead from the glade, anything that hinted at human passage. She found a small one, not far from where the owellette had lain. It was a very thing dirt path, almost overgrown to the point where it wasn't a path anymore, but it was there. Stomping down the prickly arms of a thorn bush that tried to block her way, Addy once again moved into the cover of the trees. She was no tracker and she had no idea what to look for, not to mention the large bundle in her arms making it impossible for her to see even her own feet. But still she tried, looking for footprints or obviously broken branches or twigs, like she'd seen many Endals do on their Hunts. The small nuances that would have tipped her off to her pursuer, like the scuff of dirt on an otherwise clean rock, or the missing patch of moss from a fallen log, were lost on Addy. And so she walked, and walked, and walked, stopping only to check the position of the sun to make she she wasn't walking in circles and to make sure that the chicks splint was still working relativity well. The baby had stopped crying a while ago, and seemed to just sit there in Addy's arms, its big eyes turned to watch her with it's eerie, unblinking stare. While she was determined to keep walking until she came upon a house or anything the resembled someplace a person could live, the helaer also knew that she couldn't walk for ever. The baby owl had to be fed something, as well, and she had no idea what as there was no way she was going to chew up any kind of bug or worm and spit it into it's mouth. Val had to have a better way of feeding the babies, but he wasn't here now. Dusk was coming and there still wasn't any sign of human habitation, or anything human for that matter, besides herself. Stymied, Addy stopped in her tracks and plopped down onto a nearby fallen log. "You're a bit of trouble, aren't you?" She cooed at the owellette, reaching out a finger to smooth the downy feathers that covered it's little body. "What are we going to do now, eh? We're both lost and abandoned." OOCIt looks so weird without my pretty pictures!

[Flicker]

“He’s now quiet, he’s now calm, You see the pain is gone.” The dark figure sang with a soft smile to his grudgingly silent companion, evading the flustered healer with little trouble. The mother owl nipped at his ear, tweaking the plumage there wryly. “She’s got the touch as just you thought, No, no, we’ll wait and watch just as we ought, Now? You want to go now? Without rewarding the cow?” Aidara, huffing along her dirt path with her bundle, would be able to hear the melodious notes of his singing slowly escape from the midst of rustling and her own footfalls. It took until she’d sat down to reevaluate the strategy that she realized it wasn’t just another bird. Those familiar mother hoots answered the singer briefly. “Bovine the country side roving, Hooves are no good for the binding, Those look like fingers, so many fingers. She’s got no snout, just there’s a pout, Come now, she’s done you a favor, Perhaps show—No she’s not of mouse flavor!” Coming into view, slowly plodding up the trail the healer had just traversed, the hulking dark shape turned its semi-humanoid head to the massive owl on his shoulder with a frown. If Aidara could recognize the expression while he was turned sideways through the alien shape of his face. A great colorful plume swept back from the top of one of his rounded ears. “Incorrigible, you’re being horrible! Go now, fly now, see your little owly how.” Releasing the thick fur of its shoulder, the nocturnal creature gave a mighty jump that would have easily knocked over any Inarta. The black ape, however, massive in stature, simply continued hulking along on its knuckles behind the bird that swept in on Aidara with little concern to her feelings and several signs of aggression.

[Aidara]

Her first instinct was to drop the bundle in her arms and get the petch out of there. But it was her second instinct that won over, since her first was born of simple shock. She had to protect the little owlette she held. Sitting on the log, minding her own business, Addy would have been knocked over backwards if she hadn't ducked at the last second. Arching her body over the bundled baby in her arms, Addy used it as protection as the dark shape when whistling over her head. Shocked, and unsure what to do, the woman simply stayed in that position in case it decided to come back. And it did, flying lower this time, it's wingtips brushing the back of Addy's neck and causing all those little hairs to stand on end. Scared into action, she jumped to her feet while letting most of the unnecessary furs to fall to the ground. This allowed her to hug the owl closer to her chest, protecting it from whatever was swooping down on them from above. It was dark now, or at least the failing sun could no longer penetrate through the thick canopy, and the healer had missed the initial appearance of the Jamoura. It was it's incessant singing that called her attention away from the aerial attack and back along the path. She knew that voice. It was the song that she had heard earlier, that had drawn her into the forest. It was a trap. It was...an alien? She had never seen such a thing before. In fact, she didn't even recognize it as a primate or a mammal. It was one of the downfalls of living secluded on a Volcano; one was woefully ignorant to the rest of the world. Had Addy any sense of adventure, she would have undoubtedly come across this native Mizaharian race in her travels...but either way the fact remained that faced with the creature now, she was scared shitless. For every lumbering step that it took, Addy backed up two. This continued on, the small woman stumbling away from the slow and steady approach of the creature, until the mother owl swooped again. Panic finally gushed like a broken dam within her, choking her as the bile rose with it in her throat. Turning, she ran blindly back down the trail. And even over the pounding of her feet and the startled cries and shrieks of the baby in her arms, she could still hear the singing. Addy's headlong charge down the path ended abruptly when her forehead said hello to a low hanging branch. Laying her flat onto her back, the little owl tumbled from her arms onto the path next to her. Miraculously, the horribly makeshift splint was still intact. As confused and startled as the Inarta, the little owl hopped and hooted next to her on the dirt. With her head ringing and the world swirling from her crash, Addy was unable to sit up. Each attempt found her back on the ground trying not to vomit. There was a fluttering behind her and a rustling of leaves as the mother owl landed on the branch that stopped Addy in her tracks. It's head swiveled back and forth as if wondering why she was just laying there. And then soft thumping of the alien creature behind her came closer...and closer...until a shadow fell over her face, blocking out any light remaining in the night. "What....what are you? What do you want?!" Hating the way her voice shook and the fact that all her courage abandoned her in her time of need, Addy closed her eyes and turned her face away from the creature that loomed over her. It was a good thing Sira couldn't see her now, lain low by a branch and cowering like a child.

[Hermit]

The Jamoura watched the mother as she swooped among the branches. It was only his own long familiarity with camouflage and Caiyha's realm that gave him much hope of seeing her. In the canopy, her sooty feathers and darker tones of ash down made her a moving shadow. He looked down at the young woman and the dark child at her side. He was long done with song singing, as the next few moments would make the difference between the seeker's success. Of course, moments to a Jamoura were long, full of multiple layers of information. Be it the mischievous nature of his kind or a penchant for rhyming, he remained in verse, though without tone.

His deep eyes gazed on Aidara as she lay on the ground.

"Daughter of man, your time grows narrow,
A choice must be chosen this solemn night.
Will you take the owlet beneath your wing?
Or shall you be the one that is taking flight?"

His massive arm reached above him, the single finger extended easily the girth of a sapling. It pointed toward a heavy shadow among the shadows above them.

"The mother Sootwing does not tread lightly,
Though there is no lighter tread on air.
Your actions now have become sightly
To the silent killer and her owlet there."

His arm returned to his side as he sat on his massive haunches, watching the girl and the owlet before him. It was now purely for the interloper to decide both her own fate and that of her charge. Caiyha's realm was rarely one of mercy.

[Aidara]

Unable to do anything about it, a shiver trickled down the woman's spine as the Jamoura spoke, stopping only a few feet from where she lay sprawled. The massive creature had lost the sing-song quality of his voice, leaving his words heavy and full of implication. Still reeling from her blind dash through the forest, Addy felt the creatures words weigh heavily on her shoulders. She had to choose? Or what? Everyone died? That seemed rather extreme.

The faint traces of moonlight that made it through the leafy canopy was blocked by the Jamoura's hulking form, leaving her feeling as if she cowered in the deepest shadow in the entire jungle. Feeling distinctly uncomfortable and fighting the urge to bolt again, Addy attempted what she hoped was a casual scooting backwards on her bum, using her hands to propel her. Even the little distance the movement put between her and the Riddler calmed the beating of her heart a few notches.

"What do you-" Starting to repeat again what she had asked only moments before, Addy stopped mid-sentence to clear her throat as her voice cracked wildly out of control. Though she cared not what this talking animal thought of her, a deep blush crept into her cheeks. It was going to think she was a weakling by the way she cowered and croaked in fright.

With the idea that it was probably worse than running to seem afraid, Addy took the time to climb to her feet, brushing off the bits of dirt and twig that clung to her clothing. with her bryda clean and her vinati suitably re-situated, the little woman faced the waiting creature once more. Squaring her shoulders and lifting her head just up until she felt a little taller, Addy cleared her throat before speaking again.

"You want me to pick? What will happen to the one I don't choose?" As she said this, Addy repositioned the bundle closer to her chest, cradling the little baby owl as if it were a child.

"...And why would the mother there let me take her baby?" A suspicion set in, dragging her brows down over her eyes, a frown curling the corners of her lips. The Owl mother was clearly angry; hadn't it taken multiple dives at her already? If she was to walk away with the chick... what would stop the mother from fully attacking her again?

"I don't trust you." Feeling braver now that she was standing and her pursuer was standing there in front of her, rather than stalking and chanting at her from the shadows, the little woman twisted her body so that the owl chick was turned away from the Jamora as they faced off.