Solo A Feathery Friend

[Lacerta]

~|--|~ 80th, Summer, 391AV, Morning [indent]Lacerta was… wandering. She didn’t know quite why she was wandering, she just was. Curiosity had brought her to the edges of the wilderness, just around the city. It was… pretty, to say the least, and very calming, as she was out in the silence, alone, away from… people. It was a nice feeling. Well, it wasn’t entirely silent, as she could still barely hear the noises of animals, and the sound of nature. It also wasn’t completely isolated either, as Lhavit was still in plain sight, it’s towers rising high for her to see. Still, it was some of the first seriously alone time she’d had, since she’d arrived in the city, barely two seasons before. It had taken her a while to get used to the place, but she found it interesting, with the magnificent structures, and large population of Ethaefal. As she meandered around, one sound in particular caught her ear. A… cooing. Sort of like a bird’s call, but… it sounded different. The Eth wandered around curiously, trying to find where the noise was coming from. True, it could be a dangerous animal, but somehow… she doubted that. It took a few moments of searching through the trees, but she found her quarry: a medium-sized grey owl, with two tufts sticking out of its head, almost like… horns. The most noticeable feature, however, was its wing, which was slumped on the ground, bleeding, and sitting at an awkward angle. As she approached, the bird hissed and hopped away a few steps. Lacerta crouched down, staring at it, not quite sure what to do. There were several chimes of this intense staring, the Eth gazing at the owl in confusion, the bird glaring at the figure before it. Neither seemed to know what to do in such a situation. The horned owl was mostly helpless, it couldn’t fly, and seemed to know it wouldn’t be able to run away so easily. Lacerta, on the other hand, was entranced by the animal. It was so beautiful, despite its ragged appearance. She wanted to help him… but didn’t know how. How would one approach an owl, without it biting of their finger? The creature certainly seemed prepared to do such a thing, beak wide open and hissing. It also seemed to be hiding one of its wings behind its back, the damaged one, seemingly for protection. The Eth sighed, and, taking a chance, began to slowly move one of her fingers towards the owl. At first, it hissed more, surprised and scared at the steadily approaching ‘attacker’. But as the appendage drew closer and closer, making no threatening moves, and not actually doing anything, the bird seemed to relax a bit. Just a bit. It took nearly a chime of waiting, until she could finally bring her finger closer to the bird’s beak. With a small tap, she rested it on the funny mouth. There was a moment of hesitation, where both the owl and the Eth stared at the finger, equally surprised. Then, apparently regaining its senses, the horned owl lunged forwards and snapped at the finger, which was quickly brought away, just in time. Noise penetrated the silence, as Lacerta herself fell over from her crouching position, and the bird hopped back another step, wings spread to make itself larger. The Ethaefal sighed and pushed herself back up, leaning on her forearms, thinking. She didn’t have a coat… how could she trap the bird. Well… patience had gotten her this close, she might as well try again. She shuffled closer to the creature, gaining a wary look, but no movement. She sat, cross legged, a few feet from the bird, and once again, slowly stretched out her arm. It occurred to her as she did this how amazing it was to sit so close to such an excellent predator, despite being in an injured state. The owl hissed at the finger, worried, but it didn’t seem as… violent, as before. It allowed the finger to touch its beak gently, and trebled slightly as it moved up onto its feathers, those between its eyes. Somehow, the owl managed to watch both the finger and the person at the same time , and was prepared to jump at any time. Lacerta, whose reach was ending, and was practically leaning forward, tried to take a chance. She shuffled forward a bit, attempting to keep her hand on the owl’s forehead as she did so. However, moving forward caused the pressure to increase for a moment, and the bird obviously disliked that. Sensing the change, it screeched and hopped back a step, glaring at the Eth. This time not with fear, but just… annoyance. It seemed to consider her less as a threat, and more as an… irritating person intruding on its personal space. The Eth gave an exasperated sigh and followed, moving forward a little more than it had moved back. The owl now quickly glanced at the space between them and back, mistrusting the figure, and disliking the close proximities. Still, it did not complain. Now that they were close enough, the Ethaefal was going to try something… different, and possibly stupid. This time when she reached for the owl, she used both hands, causing the bird to glance between them rapidly, swiveling its neck. She rested her hands on both sides of its body, now leaning quite far forward. She took a deep breath… and squeezed, grabbing the bird and bringing it close to her chest. She clutched it there, curling herself around the panicked owl, hoping it wouldn’t hate her for this. She didn’t know why she cared about the long term… she just did. She adjusted her grip a few times, careful not to hurt the already injured wing more. That done, she held on, and waited. Whilst she patiently sat there, the owl itself struggled madly, biting, scratching, flapping its good wing. It screeched at her several time, enraged, indignant at its treatment. It was also afraid that the person had been dangerous, and feared the worst. Still, as much as it fought, even drawing blood, it got nowhere. After maybe fifteen chimes of this constant battle, it slowed, exhausted, and giving up. At that time, both relaxed, tired, bleeding, and generally unhappy. Lacerta contemplated about the event, wondering if it had actually been worth it or not. Thinking back on it, now clutching a magnificent owl… it was worth it. She sighed happily and wrapped her arms around the bird, and set off back to the city, in search of her boat. There, she could relax and think about things properly. For example, why, in the first place, she was carrying an owl. The Owl : ~|--|~

[Lacerta]

~|--|~ Luckily, her walk through the city was uneventful, as she had accidentally placed it right over Noon Rest, so basically no one was around. No one around, meant no one staring at the Eth wandering through the city, bleeding from scratched on her arms, and carrying an exhausted owl. If she’d gone when people were awake… well, that would have been strange. Really, she should have been asleep herself, but… she’d lost track of time in the mountains, and now didn’t feel so tired. Instead, she thanked that fact, not really having the patience to deal with more people, as well as an irritable owl. Finally, she reached her boat and boarded it, clutching to the bird gently. Once there, Lacerta fetched a coat and wrapped the creature in it, so her arms would be free, and painless. That done, she sat in front of the bundle, waiting for it to awaken, and trying to decide what to do with the wing. She had a vague idea about tying something stiff to it, to keep the limb un-moving. That would probably let it heal better… right? She sighed and went to search her boat for something stick-like. After a few moments of searching, she found a 2 foot long stick sitting on a table. She wasn’t quite sure why there was a stick in her ship, but she was thankful for it none the less. That done, she returned for her owl. It was awake and grumpy now, but still too tired to fight off the coat that covered it. The Eth glanced at the sky a moment, back at the bird, and moved him inside the cabin, so he wouldn’t fly away. From there, she grabbed some twine and unwrapped the indignant creature. It sat there, irritated, and slightly scared, as she pulled open its wing. The owl winced, and tried to fight for a bit, but apparently it was too painful, and he gave up. She lay the stick across the top of his wing and paused. How was she supposed to tie this anyways? Around… the feathers? She took an experimental piece of rope and wound it all around the wing once. It was awkward at the bottom, and she was slightly worried about his feathers, but forcefully ignored the fact. She tied it up at the top, and repeated the process in two more places. The owl’s wind was now stiffly attached to the stick… and hopefully immobile. Just as the Ethaefal finished, the creature seemed to decide now would be a nice time to panic. It screeched at her, and hopped backwards, attempting to flap both of its wings. Sadly, the injured one hit the table it stood on, causing it to yelp (as best an owl could) and stop that movement. Still, the bird watched the woman warily, standing as far away as possible before falling of its platform. Lacerta sat on the other side of the table, head in hands, contemplating what would happen next. She came to the conclusion that the owl was male, though she wasn’t quite sure why. She just decided to call it a ‘him’. She also wanted to name him… she ignored the fact that it showed she was getting close to him, and used the excuse that it was getting annoying to call him ‘owl’ all the time. She thought for a moment, wanting to name him after a constellation, like she was. One came to mind… the bird of paradise, Apus. The bird before her wasn’t exactly paradisey, but… whatever. It fit. ”So… Apus” she muttered, testing out the name. She knew he couldn’t understand a word she was saying, but really… it didn’t matter. She grinned slightly, causing a little confusion in the owl, and leaned back. How would she help him next. Apus, now newly named came to the conclusion that it would be best to stay as far as possible from the Eth. So, he hopped off the table and away into a far corner of the cabin. Onto her bed, actually. She sighed and glared at the bird, equaling its stare. She decided the best tactic would be to… wait. And see what happened. And she did. For nearly a bell she stared at him, watching the bird hop around the strange landscape that was a bed. Eventually, she decided that this was getting nowhere, and needed a way to get him to move closer. She found a piece of raw meat and placed it on the center of the table. Owls liked meat, right? She resumed her previous position, lying back in the seat built into the wall, and crossed her arms. As she watched the owl, her eyes gazed over the rest of the interior of her ship. It was small, and simple, but with enough room for four to sleep comfortably. The table was bolted to the ground, and the chairs were just benches in the corner, which were wide enough to double as beds if needed. On the far side, towards the bow, built into the walls were two sets of bunk beds. They were rarely used… but they were there. The far wall also had several shelves built in, for storage purposes. The room, following the shape of the boat, was short, so her head just reached the ceiling, and widened by the stern. In fact, the difference between the front and back was a width of maybe 3 or 4 feet. Apus, at the moment, was near the thinner end, sitting comfortably on one of the beds, but staring at the meat intensely. He seemed to be mentally debating, obviously hungry and wanting the food, but too scared to move closer. Lacerta let him think like this, and waited for his next move. Finally, he hopped off the bed and up to the table. From there, using some amazing feat of jumping, he leaped onto one of the seats before pausing. He glanced at the Eth quickly, who was sitting nearly opposite him. After a moment of hesitation, he jumped up onto the table, and dashed for the meat. Grabbing it, he hurried back to the bed, clutching it in his beak. The owl gobbled it down quickly, before seating himself on the comfortable bedspread. The Ethaefal sighed quietly, realizing how long it would take before Apus would trust her. Well… it would be worth it. Hopefully. ~|--|~

[Lacerta]

~|--|~ She leaned forward on the table and watched the owl, wondering what to do next. Just waiting for him to approach did nothing…Apus had no reason to come near, other than food, which she didn’t want to resort to. Maybe it was time for her to approach. Lacerta stood up from her seat, pushing on the table, before walking down towards the bird. He watched her carefully, a last bit of food stuck to his beak. She sat down on the bed beside him, and to her surprise, he didn’t jump off. Instead, the owl ran over to the opposite side of the seat and cowered there, keeping an eye on the Eth at all times. Apparently she wasn’t that scary after all. Or Apus just liked the bed. Whichever one it was, The Ethaefal thought that things weren’t going so badly. And maybe she could move a little closer… a slight twitch by her body brought out a hiss from the owl, causing the woman to freeze. She relaxed, slowly, having moved maybe… half a centimeter. While waiting for her quarry to calm down, she mentally calculated how long this whole endeavor would take. There was maybe… one and a half meters between them, which was 150 centimeters. She moved maybe a centimeter a chime. So… two bells was 120 chimes, with half a bell left over. So it would take her two and a half bells to finish this. Great. Lacerta didn’t feel like spending that much time… maybe she’d take a chance again. Standing up, she grabbed her coat again, and returned to her seat. From there, she waited till Apus relaxed, before pouncing. She tossed the garment onto the bird and pinned him down, wrapping him completely (excluding the injured wing) with it. She grabbed the bundle and held it tightly to herself, leaning against the wall in her bunk. This time, her arms were saved from the pummeling, but she was slightly worried about her coat. Hopefully the owl hadn’t ripped anything… She sighed and waited, patiently, as once again the creature slowed his movements, calmed down, and grew exhausted. When that happened, the Eth moved back to the table and unwrapped her coat from around the bird, leaving him limp and tired. Despite his exhaustion, Apus still managed to glare at the woman who had captured him, but refrained from fighting anymore. This gave her plenty of time to look at his wing again, and check out the damage done. Many feathers had been ripped out, and that, along with several long scratches, seemed to be the source of the bleeding. She sighed and poked them a few times, but after nearly being nipped by the irritated bird, she refrained from causing him pain. They looked like they were from some kind of claws… maybe a cat, or a wolf, that had attacked him. Not too strange, but the Ethaefal wondered why he’d been within reach of their grasp anyways, and how he’d gotten away. ”What’d you do to yourself…?” she asked him not expecting an answer. While saying this, she leaned down so her head was level with his, and gazed into his eyes. A moment seemed to pass where she almost attempted to portray the question mentally, but it quickly ended with another snap of the owl’s beak. ”Fine… don’t answer me” she told him haughtily, sitting back up. She didn’t even know why she was talking to an owl in the first place, and expected an answer. This was really getting weird. First, she named him, now… she was trying to have a conversation. It would be impossible to put him back in the wild. The wild… Lacerta thought on this. Until now, she hadn’t really considered what they would do next, when Apus was healed and healthy. The obvious plan was to release him, but she didn’t feel like doing that. She was growing to close… discovering that even a simple owl could have a complex personality. The Eth sighed and rested her head on the table, though careful to keep her nose out of the bird’s range. ”What am I going to do with you….” she asked to no one in particular, gazing up at the ceiling. After a few chimes of enrapt contemplation, she stood up, looking for something. She didn’t know exactly what she was looking for… she just needed to do something different. Maybe some more food? She could try hand feeding him… She fetched some more meat, a chunk of raw chicken, and returned to her seat. Resting her head on one arm and holding the food in another, she held it out to Apus, almost shoving it in his beak. Surely he couldn’t resist that, right? Well, apparently he could, as the owl leaned back, eyes weary, but too tired to move. It took a bit, but he slowly inched his head forward, before grabbing the meat with his beak. Using a quick tug, he took it out of the Eth’s hand and began gulping it down, head tilted upwards, apparently to eat it faster. Within ticks the entire chunk was gone, hiding somewhere in the owl’s gullet. He looked a little more content than before, and was slowly becoming more energetic. Lacerta sighed quietly, not quite sure why, but feeling sleepy and bored. Right… she’d completely missed noon rest, and it was probably reaching the next one by now. She should probably sleep. But… Apus. What would she do about him? Could she leave him here alone, un-attended? Her mouth split in a wide yawn and she gave up fighting the sleepiness. Moving thoughtlessly, she re-wrapped the owl in her coat once more, and placed him on the bunk opposite her. It didn’t even surprise the Eth that he went willingly, without fighting to get free. Too tired to care, she moved to her bed and climbed in, going to sleep in her normal clothes. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow, and went into a dreamless slumber. ~|--|~

[Lacerta]

~|--|~ Several bells later the Ethaefal awoke to a strange sight. Right in front of her face was… a pair of staring, bright yellow eyes, surrounded by grey feathers. It took a few moments of confused silence for her to realize that it was, in fact, an owl. It then took her another bit to figure out why in the world there was an owl in her cabin, and on her chest. For some reason during the bells of her sleep, Apus had removed himself from his makeshift nest and moved onto an apparently warmer place. Lacerta groaned irritably, as the bird didn’t seem close to getting off, instead liking it’s humanoid seat. . ”Get offff” she grumbled at him, but was answered only with a blank stare. At least he didn’t seem frightened by her anymore. Well… he was certainly at the top of the heap now. Literally. She glared at him, and prepared herself to move up in the hierarchy. She sat up stiffly, causing the owl to flop backwards into her lap in surprise. From there, she pinned down his wings from the base and continued to provide him with a death stare. Apus struggled and shrieked several times, kicking with his talons wildly, and flapping his good wing. After a few moments of this attempted domination, the Eth let go, letting the captured owl hop away with irritation. She sat up and watched him, noticing that her attack had gotten her nowhere. Unlike dogs, who were dominated by stares, raptors apparently weren’t, taking them more as challenges. Lacerta sighed and leaned back against the wall, when something amazing happened. Apus approached her. He came near even though he didn’t have any food. The Eth watched in amazement as he drew near, and involuntarily squeaked when she discovered his reason for it. He’d pecked her, hard, in the calf, before hopping away again, and up onto the opposite bunk. It had drawn blood, and the red liquid was slowly creating a droplet on her skin. The Ethaefal grunted, annoyed, and wiped it away with a finger, before looking up at her attacker. The owl had a smug look in his eye, and was sitting in his coat-nest, preening himself. The petching idiot… She glared at him, and for a reason she couldn’t later understand, hissed. She was rewarded with another stare, and an equal shriek from the bird, which caused her to scowl. He was just being annoying now. Getting up, she sat right next to him, and ignored is indignant noises at being approached in such a way. Still, he didn’t retaliate, but after a few moments began preening again. While he was occupied, the Eth sent a stealthy finger around behind him, and poked his feathers. He looked up, startled, and swiveled his head to the spot. Apus saw nothing, as Lacerta had quickly retracted her finger out of sight, and tried hard to hide her evil grin. When he relaxed and returned to his position, she darted the same appendage back and poked the same spot, lightly. Again he turned, and again she moved her finger out of the way. The owl, before going back to his personal grooming, glared at the Eth, as if suspecting that this was all her fault. Even though it was, it was great fun… She repeated the process again several times, before the bird finally gave up and stopped looking for the attacker. Then, she managed to rest her hand on his soft feathers, before beginning to stroke them lovingly. This calmed her down from her excited game, and was actually quite relaxing. Apus seemed to ignore it, not really considering it a thread, but also relaxed, just slightly, so it was barely visible. It amazed her how many different kinds of feathers he had… they were all different shapes, and sizes. The ones on his wings were even more varies, with long ones at the tips, short at the top, and layered several times over. This complicatedness must have been why owls could actually fly… Maybe she’d figure that out one day. When Apus could fly again, she’d watch his feathers and see how he used them to fly… it would be very interesting to learn… Her thoughts halted when the owl stood up, and stretched his one good wing. Amazingly, his binding was still on and keeping his wing straight. She worried about this slightly, hoping that it would heal faster that way, and not be making it worse, but let it be. On a whim, the Ethaefal lowered her arm to his claws gingerly, wondering if he’d step on. She’d seen other people with birds carry theirs on their arms, and thought it would be interesting to try… though they always wore a leather protector, and she wasn’t quite sure why. Her question was quickly answered, as Apus politely took perch on her arm, and gripped slightly. His talons were oh so sharp… the poked, unintentionally, and drew blood, causing the Eth to wince slightly. Still, she slowly and steadily raised the limb so it was at an ok height from the bed, and stood up. She moved to the center of the room, staring in amazement at the creature on her arm. He was surprisingly light, maybe only few pounds, and his legs were feathery around the claws, so a few brushed her skin unintentionally. She gazed into his yellow eyes and he gazed back, both of them caught in the sight. Though she was amazed, Apus himself was completely calm about this, as if he did it every day. Lacerta was tempted to glare at the owl, but was in such a good mood that she didn’t want to. She was enthralled by the feathery creature, and that she had a wild owl on her arm. It had never happened before… getting this close to a wild creature. Her mouth gaped slightly, but she quickly shut it in embarrassment. The bird, seemingly getting bored with the perch shuffled along her arm, creating a few more ignored cuts along the way, and stared upwards, as if asking for something. Taking a guess, the Eth raised her arm hesitantly, but it was enough for what he wanted. The owl hopped up, straight onto her head, his talons poking in a few spots. The Ethaefal froze, too scared to move, and wondering what would happen if he fell. She could feel the creature shuffling around on her head, a hop, then nothing. She turned slowly but saw nothing, though felt something… strange… on one of her horns. A resistance. She moved an awkward hand up to the point, and touched something feathery. He was perched on her horn. Oh Syna… this was one strange owl. In a moment of humor, she considered getting herself a second, for symmetry, but had to stop when her giggles upset Apus. He shuffled his talons and screeched indignantly. At least it was a good place, since he couldn’t scratch the horns…. Lacerta slowly and gingerly moved to one of the seats around the table and sat, keeping her head straight and stiff. Apus pecked part of the horn, causing a quiet ‘ping’, before hopping off and awkwardly gliding to the table. From there he stood and stared at the Eth, and she copied him. This was going to lead to one strange relationship… ~|--|~

[Elysium]

Lacerta

XP:
Medicine +2
Observation +3
Birdkeeping +2

Lore:
Apus the Owl
How to Approach a Bird of Prey
Medicine: Splints
Birdkeeping: Leather Gloves/Gauntlets

Awards & Penalties: Lacerta has earned herself a pet owl and some wounds on her arms and legs from Apus.

Notes: This was such a sweet solo! In the future, don't be afraid to use Tanroa's Blessing to heal wounds. It's a handy and effective tool for the Ethaefal. If you're interested in birdkeeping and falconry, I'd love to see where you take it from here!

and so, the journey continues...