Completed [Underground Forest] A day learning how to trust again

[Erade]

Timestamp: 10th of Autumn, 513AV

Erade personally didnt like this place. It gave her the chills and gods know what else. The creatures here were an alternative food source in times of need but they are all bland and gross looking. Not to mention the giant bats that occupy and hunt in these caves were a deterrent in itself but Erade needed a place to train Etaolle and not have to worry about distractions. The yasi's intentions were to stay by the entrance and just have her come to her hand and eat from it.

Erade walked in silence, keeping a firm grip on the cage that Etaolle currently resided in. To be honest she still haven't forgiven herself or Etaolle for Noralth's death. Since his death and her burying him, she had been holding it in. Hiding behind fake smiles and trying to pretend to still be Erade, but it was hard. If anyone truly knew her they would have noticed how off she was, how much she was hurting inside. Despite all of this Erade needed to get this bird trained as soon as possible, something in her gut told her that she will be needing the rook's help soon.

Erade still haven't been able to find a proper teacher, there was one notable master here in Wind Reach and she has been busy. Master Meera was a teacher as well as an Endal. Between her apprentices and hunting, there was not enough time to even glance in the yasi's way right now. The teen was pretty sure there was plenty others who had the skill but probably most were hunters and they had a duty to the city to take care of, so Erade was on her own. However this time she did some research at the Enclave, she had found a few books on falconry and read them from cover to cover. This time she hoped for success not failure. Learning from one's mistakes is sometimes the greatest lesson they can learn and Erade definitely felt so.

Upon entering the creepy cave system, Erade waited until her eyes adjusted to the lower light levels. In the hand that wasn't carrying her black bird, she tightly clutched a worn perch. It had once belong to Noralth but Erade has found a new purpose for it. She set it a bit of ways from the entrance, helped the bird out of the cage, and Etaolle onto it. Now looking through her backpack, Erade pulled out a thin but sturdy bit of leather.

The teen was strapped on pinions so she offered her time to Lexi one of the leatherworkers. The older women didnt ask questions only told her what she needed of her. It had been manual labor that of dek status but Erade needed the leather so she grinned and beared the work for 2 bells. End result was 2 thin strips of leather, one five feet in length and the other 15. Their purpose was simple keep Etaolle tethered to the perch as she flew from it to Erade's hand.

Slipping the shorter leash through the bottom of the jess and then the other end to the perch using a special knot that allowed her to undo it if an emergency arose. It took her a few tries to get it right but she finally did or so she hoped. Everything was set up all that was needed now, was to remove the hood. Erade stood before the owl, just looking at it. Last time she had removed the hood, the bird had gone into hunter mode so to speak and that was something she didn't want to happen again until the time came for them to hunt for real.

Her view switched to her non gloved hand, it was currently wrapped in a bandage, another incident from eight nights ago. It was almost healed and probably would have by now if Erade didnt pick at the scab that had formed. Tears threatened to resurface but she pushed them aside. The yasi took a deep breath, her hand hovering over the hood and shaking slightly.

xx

[Erade]

Erade stood there before the black bird, with her arm out stretched over the hood. Even though her arm quivered the rest of her body was rigid as if she was just another piece of the stone wood around her. The yasi stood there for a few ticks, unmoving, silent on the outside but screaming at herself. Come on you dolt! There is nothing to be scared of. Erade wanted to believe herself but just couldn't bring herself to trust the Rook before her.

She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. First and foremost she needed to still her erratic heartbeat that threatened to burst through her chest. After she managed to do that the teen took off the hood as quickly as possible without harming the bird and backed up some. Erade wanted it to take in its surroundings and it could do that without being within its reach. The tiny girl watched Etaolle swivel her head back and forth while cawing out. Erade was pretty sure it could pick up on everything either by sight or by listening and even now probably had the whole place scanned within 20 feet.

So in this exercise, the yasi was going to entice her with the scraps of meat and whistle to the bird in hopes instinct took over and she hopped to her glove. Of course this was all in theory but she truly had nothing else to lose at this point.

Etaolle seemed to have calmed down some now that she had somewhat of an idea where she was. Erade took that as a hint that she was ready and she crept closer until she could sit before the owl. Sitting the teen held her gloved hand out, letting the meat hang between her fingers. She kept it just out of the Rook's reach so if she wanted it she had to hop to her hand for it. "Etaolle" Erade said then whistling softly.

At first Etaolle didnt come. She clearly saw the meat but wasn't sure about going to it. Erade kept waving the meat before her and pulling her hand back when she tried to snap it out of her fingers. "Etaolle!" the yasi said with force this time then whistling again. Hungry stomach won over caution and the bird hopped from the perch to the teen's glove. Erade couldn't help but smile as she watched Etaolle eating the bits of meat. She allowed the bird to finish and placed her back on the perch to start over again. The next time Etaolle came alot quicker but was still hesitate to remain on Erade's wrist once the food was gone.

The yasi didn't entirely mind the fact because she too felt uncomfortable being that close to her. They went back and forth as such for at least a bell, each time Etaolle coming a bit sooner than the last. Erade was running out of scraps and with the last piece the teen wondered if she would come to her wrist if she was standing further away. Curiosity fueling her, the tiny girl backed up almost well into the cave, but within the five foot limit of the tether.

xx

[Erade]

Erade should have known with her horrible luck that things never go exactly as planned. With all her whistling and calling Etaolle, something in these caves were bound to have heard her. Maybe with some luck still attached to her it wasn't one of the giant bats that occupy theses caves but one of the more common creatures.

As she backed up from the rook, Erade had paid attention to where she was stepping or at least she thought she had. Slipping on some particularly slimey part of undergrowth, the yasi fell swiftly on her butt and her right hand, she had used to break her fall, was some mere inches from one of the toxic slugs. Looked like she had a bit more luck than Erade gave herself credit for. It took every ounce of Erade not to scream in terror and possibly alert something bigger. Holding her breath, she wiggled away on her butt away from the slug. It wasn't until the yasi was (in her mind) far away that it wouldn't have the chance to viciously attack her face or feet, that she allowed herself to breathe again.

The teen gave the root a wide berth and once again assumed a position within Etaolle's eyesight. With her last piece of meat, Erade held her gloved hand out and called to the black bird. The Rook responded quickly this time and swooped off the perch, keeping low to the ground and back up to the yasi's hand to eat. The bird still kept her distance as much as possible on the glove.

Since she was officially out of food, Erade watched on as Etaolle ate, fumbling over the meat. Even though, the bird still seemed graceful despite it making an obvious mess. I wonder..

The yasi waited patiently for the owl to finish before attempting anything. Once it was, Erade slowly extended her other hand out to the corvid, making sure it could clearly see her intentions or at least see her hand. Etaolle probably could sense what the girl wanted to do and wasn't too keen on the idea. However she surprised Erade and tolerated the yasi to pet her briefly before flying back to the perch cawing as if to say lets go.

Erade couldn't help but give a small smile at the bird. She slowly trekked her way back to where the bird impatiently waited, when she noticed something upon the ground. A small black feather adorned the ground. The teen picked it up gently as if it was to break at any moment. Erade contemplated to put it in her hair but decided against it. "Maybe I can once we build up more trust Hm? She spoke quietly to the rook, knowing it wasn't paying any attention to her anymore.

Erade quickly packed up the leather tethers and placed the hood back on. The rook shifted around as the yasi placed her back into the cage. She had no desire to linger in these creepy caves any longer and hurried out and back to her room.

[Harrier]

Skills	Amount
Falconry	2
Observation	2

Lore

Underground Forest: Unsettles the Nerves

Helping Lexi for Leathers

Training Etaolle

Bonus:

Additional Comments: A good starter thread for training. Thank you for making the changes that were asked; there wasn't much in skills I could award, however. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, PM me

(c) abstract