Open wintersong [Colt]

[Velho]

THE MAGPIE AND HER SACK
CHAPTER II - WINTER 30 OF 516

Velho Valjeta was not known for her patience.

She stood at the edge of Lhavit, looking out upon the dense trees ahead and wherever her sight would fall. She'd set up her tent somewhere nearby, already missing the comfort and warmth that her family unit had brought. Family unit being one father, a missing mother, and a grumpy horse. It was nothing special, nothing cushy, and certainly much more private than she had ever been used to. Living in the Chiet ranks had more than hardened her for life in Lhavit - those living here looked so soft - though she knew that appearances were not to be judged by. Yet, Wind Reach life had instilled a sense of seriousness/survivalist feelings into the young girl.

She disliked the 'wait, wait, wait' atmosphere that she was receiving here. She wanted to be out in the woods riding her mount, or practicing her lackluster hunting skills, or plain flying across the landscape to scout out the best views and places to set up home! Sadly, she was stuck, trying to figure out a way to survive.

It irked Velho that she wasn't sure of how to carry on with life here. Everyone seemed so... content with their lifestyles as if they had been born into the task they were doing. They all looked so comfortable, so good, so expert at their jobs that it made her feel like she should have just stayed home and moped about the house and complained to her father about how sad her life was and that she wished she could do some glassblowing for once.

He would have chuckled, rubbed her hair and told her to fly off to look for some feathers that he could use to decorate their clothes.

"Ah, the life of the privileged!" Velho sighed, blowing a strand of hair away from her face with a well-timed burst of air from her mouth. She flopped to the ground, shuffling into the mouth of her tent to look at the "Best View In All Mizahar" as the sun rose and the black sky was painted gold.

"COMMON" | "NARI"

@Colt thread for you when you want lovely! <3

[Colt]

It was hard to suppress all emotion. Despite all typical outward appearances, Colt was nowhere close to the cold, efficient and stable person he liked others to think he was. Beneath the surface he was boiling, forced to fight back memories of blood and saltwater and tallgrass and gray feathers and red hair. Being “alright” was usually a matter of timing and endurance; so long as he had a task, it was possible to pretend he wasn’t on the brink of snapping.

Fall had been easier, in its own twisted way. The past year had sucked away his strength and muscle, and the constant hunger and weakness had made easy distractions. But fall had been kind, and Colt could feel his strength returning; there was no more pained slowness in his movements or deadened caution in his decisions. His mind was sharper and his body close to recovered from the previous cycle of sickness and starvation, but it came with its own price: this new winter did not look so kind.

Oh, the people of Lhavit were certainly pleased with the mild weather. They were a very lackadaisical group, and, as Colt was finding out, cut from much softer cloth than he was used to. From Drykas culture to Myrian culture to Lhavitian––the transition to sudden laziness was still unsettling.

For while the common Lhavit citizens might revel in the mild winter, the Witch felt only a deep dread that grew stronger with each passing day. This was not his place of work and was nothing like the Sea of Grass, but he nevertheless felt the vague nervousness that had settled over the mountains like a fog. Beasts and plants alike were waiting, looking at the sky for hints of snow that should have come long ago.

Colt moved across the face of the mountain as quickly as he was able, Snow at his heels. The steep rocks and inclines were becoming easier with each trip; it was no longer an endless struggle to get from one place to another. He was getting used to it.

Although he could not see it for himself, Colt’s eyes were glowing bright magenta as he tapped into his pathfinding magic. Threads of djed spread before him in wobbly, uneven lines, but he could follow them if he concentrated. He was getting used to magic, too.

The trail they were following was that of a fox, small and probably young. He’d spotted the creature from a distance, clear as a beacon with its brilliant white winter plumage against the dark mountain stone. Colt wasn’t a mountain Witch, but he wasn’t stupid; he could assume that if animals were turning white, there was supposed to be snow. And since there wasn’t snow, those animals were bound to either starve or be killed. No, he wasn’t a mountain Witch, but he was nevertheless duty-bound to do what he could.

When they were within shouting distance of their quarry, Colt closed his eyes and let the magic slip back inside. He signalled for Snow to stay there and continued the rest of the way by himself; it wouldn’t do to frighten the fox before he’d had the chance to speak with it.

Unlike during his hunting trips, Colt made no effort to hide himself. He walked tall and open, allowing every creature in the area to see and recognize him. The fox peeked out nervously from behind a rock, no doubt preparing for trouble, but relaxed when it caught sight of the marked Witch.

No harm intended, Colt said through his eyes. I have food for you.

Despite being a stranger, the fox trusted both his authority and his offer. It dashed from the rock and snapped up the dried meat he tossed down; when he knelt and offered more, the fox leaped boldly––or desperately––into his hands.

[color=white][shadow=white]Other foxes? Colt asked.

Not many right now, the fox answered, in the broad and wordless images of Nura. The Witch sensed through his fingers that the fox was male. No snow, no hiding. Many eaten. Many starve.

Colt wasn’t surprised, but it still worried him. Others, where?

One, around shiny-rock-big-forest-antelope-place. Images of glass and structures arranged themselves in Colt’s head; he recognized an okomo, and a squat wooden building. The okomo stable, perhaps?

By scent, the fox in his hands also told him that the other fox was an older female. Colt marked the information for later, and picked up the fox gently.

With me, he said, alongside encouraging images of food for you. He wasn’t certain how long it would take, but he knew instinctively that if foxes were here, they were somehow necessary––and that if the winter they needed to survive was absent, they would need help to survive until spring.

He turned, expecting to find Snow where he’d left her, but found his dog missing. No, not missing; he could see her white fur from a distance. Colt frowned; she should know better than to wander off. He shifted the fox to one hand and went after her.

Snow was pacing anxiously, staying close to where her partner had left her but clearly desiring something else. Her nose was to the ground, and she was wagging frantically; the moment she heard him come up behind her, she began to jump and bark at whatever scent she’d found. The fox startled, but Colt silenced the dog with a decisive stop. When she continued to pace, he put a hand on her hip and forced her to sit down.

Home-scent. Her information came to him not as an image, but as an experience. Dirt and grass and––and horse. The smell of horse.

Colt recoiled, shocked and confused and elated all at the same time. Snow was back on her feet again, pacing and putting her head down and just waiting for permission to give chase. She smelled it. She remembered it. She wanted it.

Colt knew that the scent could give them no peace––not in the way Snow was expecting––but the smell stuck to the roof of his mouth and reminded him of things that were precious. His free hand thumbed at the woven arm band hidden through the cloth of his sleeve, half-consciously bidding Snow to follow. He couldn’t help it, even knowing that the payoff would be empty at best. This would would hurt, he knew it would, but gods, if he could just see a horse…

Snow burst after the trail, pinning her nose to the ground as the Witch struggled to follow. The fox was uneasy, but another chip of dried meat calmed him enough to tolerate whatever was happening. The path was jagged, but the scent was strong––strong enough for Snow, at least.

They rounded an outcropping and caught sight of a small camp in the distance, with the distinct shape of a tent lording over it. Through the haze of longing, Colt could see that it was a tent fashioned for more than one person, although he wasn’t close enough to see if there was enough equipment and space for more than one.

While Snow was possibly even more excited than him at the scent of horse, it wasn’t enough to overcome her caution; the dog barrelled toward the edge of the camp, stopped, then skirted back nervously. She barked to announce herself and then hovered around the fringes; she didn’t want to get any closer, but neither did she want to leave.

[Velho]

THE MAGPIE

When she heard the bark, Velho stiffened.

She refused to jerk around. No, no, it was absolutely vital that she made no sudden movements, no immediate shifts into her magpie self. She could sense the Frostmarch breathing slowly with her hand on its back, but even then she felt the tension in the muscles. They were both nervous, now. At best, it was a dog. A house-pet or a favoured creature. And the worst case possible... she did not want to think about it. Animals, in the presence of kelvics, might be able to sense their creature side and it was something that Velho would not risk.

She heard the skittering and pitter-patter of tiny feet, judged from the sounds and scrabbling dust that the animal was small. If it came down to a fight, she could probably win if she needed to. She could smell it now, the scent of dog so clear.

"Might as well..." She muttered mostly to herself. If there was a small, screamy animal here, there was usually a human - or at least a humanoid - to go with it. The kelvic was uncertain of how she should react in such a situation, but she drew herself up to her (meager) full height, peering down her nose at the infernal creature. She needed to appear stronger than she was, more dangerous than she was. It helped that the dog was already at the outskirts of her campsite; if it had barged in and spooked her horse and destroyed the tent that she and Aeod had so carefully set up, she would have been beyond livid.

"What." Her voice was firm, but not unkind. Instead, her features turned down as she searched past the white animal, looking for the watcher in the trees. Or not trees but shrubs or whatever vegetation was present. Presently Velho found him, a comely figure not unpleasant to the eye. What was with her luck these few days, meeting good-looking-

She cut herself off there, stared in obvious distrust at the man.

"Why are you ogling my home."

"COMMON" | "NARI"

[delete]

Daffy moved quickly, her white ankle-height boots scrunched the leaves and twigs underfoot quite loudly. Her skirt had been hiked up and tied with a rubber band so that it was easier to move quickly in without the risk of tripping on in. Her white blouse had the sleeves rolled all the way up to her elbows and her face was void of cosmetics. She liked to come out here to the edge of Lhavit when the crowds were too thick and making her feel trapped and claustrophobic. Daffy's hair was all over the place, and she constantly had to sweep it back out of the way of her eyes.

When she finally made it there was an instant calming sensation that washed over her. It was warm out, which was unsettling, but at least she was alone. Daffy could close her eyes and hear ever bird, every animal, every rustle in the trees and bushes. She liked the outdoors, it was very freeing. She somewhat missed her long days of travel, her muscles had gotten softer again already, and she wasn't in as good a shape.

In the near distance she could hear a dog barking. Daffy kept her eyes closed and focused on the sound. She could tell what direction it was coming from, and roughly how close it was. Daffy liked dogs, she wished she had one for herself. And she was curious. Of course it could be dangerous, but she decided she might risk it.

Now she moved quietly. She knew how to tree lightly, and she was quite good at observing where to put her foot to make the least amount of noise. She got closer to the sound and eventually more sounds emerged. She could hear a girl speaking, first in a series of shrill birds sounds, then in an accented common tongue. She heard the sounds of a horse as well, pretty uncommon in Lhavit but something she was used to seeing. She looked towards the dog, hearing both man made footsteps and canine ones. It was too bright for her to rely on her sight very well unfortunately. But when she saw the people she decided to wait and observe rather than to make contact, which was far too intimidating of an option. the only weapon she had were her teeth right now, and that didn't fill her with confidence.

[Colt]

Snow hovered and circled, keeping her head low in caution but not quite crossing over to threatening. She knew that it was bad to trespass in a place where she had not been given permission to go, but the smell of horse––the smell of home––had overcome her manners.

But there it was. Huge and white and more beautiful than all the skyglass in Lhavit. When his eyes landed on it, Colt was struck silent in awe; for a single moment, it was like he could see a tiny piece of home in that mane.

But then he saw its eyes––dull, dumb, foriegn––and the spell was shattered.

There was also a woman in the camp, who remained motionless for a moment before turning stiffly to see the intruders. She was short and lean, with black-ish hair and dark brown eyes narrowed in suspicion. Her flat ‘what’ was easy enough to understand, and although colt didn’t know what “ogling” meant, her meaning was clear enough.

Apologies, Colt signed, although he knew she would not understand. “Sorry. My Snow, my dog, we… find… thing of horse.” Frustrated exasperation. “Horse, we… look for. We know horse? Sorry, no harm for you, foolish dog.”

Snow was whining softly in confusion, still drawn to the horse even when Colt signaled for her to come back to me. She hesitated, took a step in his direction, looked back at the horse, and then finally obeyed and returned to his side.

“That… horse,” Colt said, request and struggle on his shoulders, “Look, may I?” Tucking the fox deeper into his shirt to keep it dark and calm, Colt grimaced in annoyance and signed difficulty. “I am stranger, not good common words.”

When Snow tensed suddenly, however, he paused. His partner’s ears were perked and her tail was down, what she usually did when she sensed danger.

Colt was immediately on edge, turning a shoulder to the woman with the horse and facing outward.

“Out there, something,” he murmured sharply, posture hinting at defensiveness. Whatever this strange woman thought of him, it could be put on hold for both their sakes. Something was sneaking up on them, and that was more important.

While Snow raised her tail and bared her teeth towards what it was she had picked up on, Colt reached inward for the magic that lay in his eyes. His djed stretched and flexed, and then his eyes began to glow bright magenta as the world was laid before him in a vast expanse of bright threads. Rodents, raptors, prey and predator alike had moved this way in the past, but he ignored those; in the distance, thick and bright and immediate, lay the passage of something larger. They were being watched by something, not quite as large as a deer, almost like…

“A person?”

oocSo, so sorry for the long delay!