ORIGIN - Healing

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Kielo appeared to relax at that, a small sigh escaping their nostrils. They folded their wings against their shoulders, the quiet rustle of feathers audible as they curled up, eyes still closed. "If you say so," they said, sounding pleased, and relieved. After that, they were content to remain in blissful silence for a while.

Their ears pricked up as Winter spoke their name. "Hm?" they mumbled, raising their head, curiosity showing in their blind eyes. Their expression shifted into one of surprise at her question, and they tilted their head slowly. "I've been here since I was born, but... I've always wanted to explore the caves. But even Polaris just feels so big, so I've always been a little scared to leave." They paused, eyes flickering as they considered the endless possibilities. A gentle smile came across their face. "I think it'd be a lot easier with you there with me."

their smile turned into a grin as Winter spoke. "Of course I want to, silly! I've always wondered what lies outside of Polaris, and... well, I never thought I'd get the courage to ever see it."

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"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

tags: @Winter
notes: here

Winter's tail curled with delight. "We could help each other! It'll be a lot of fun!" She at first didn't want to mention all the fear she had faced outside of their home cave, for fear that Kielo wouldn't go with her if she did, but then she knew that she had to. She cared too much to not tell her. "Well, I should warn you, it can get kind of scary out there. There's a lot of really mean gembounds, like the one that injured me. I don't want you doing anything that scares you or might hurt you. I wouldn't...wouldn't be able to live with myself if you got hurt."

She shifted uncomfortably, her tongue flicking quickly with nervousness, a dozen scenarios coming to her head if they traveled around. What if the goose attacked again? What if Rift made Kielo feel bad too? What if some other unknown terror tried to tear them apart...literally?

"And still I feel I said too much."
"My silence is my self defense."

Tags: @Kielo
Notes:

"Yeah, for sure! How exciting!" Kielo fluffed their feathers in excitement. "I think there was a part of me that thought I'd ever see the rest of the cave..." they breathed, hardly daring to believe that they would be taking such a trip together, one day. They perked to worried attention, though, as Winter continued speaking, this time with a warning. The hybrid frowned, looking uneasy for an instant as they gathered their thoughts.

They knew that if it came down to it, they'd be useless in a fight. Finally, they shook their head, ruffling their feathery mane.

"Well... maybe if that happens, we can explain that we don't wanna fight. And if they still do, then... well... you can help us run away. You can do that, right? If you tell me where to go it'll be much easier to find my way," the hybrid's ears pricked in hopeful excitement. "B-but you don't need to worry about me. I mean, I lasted this long on my own here, right? I'm tougher than I look. er... I think." There was a short and awkward pause. "Do I look tough?"

This was accompanied by an avian cock of the head and a curious expression.

Perhaps 'tough' was the wrong word.

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"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

tags: @Winter
notes: here

Winter chuckled, the nervousness melting away. Who cares if they met the goose again? Kielo was right - they didn't have to fight anyone, they could walk away. The only reason she had ever gotten into a fight in the first place was because the goose had taunted her into losing her temper. She was sure that having Kielo with her now, she wouldn't be so easily angered by stupid bird comments.

"Yeah,
that's true, we can run! And if they try to follow us and hurt us, I can always give them a bite, although I'd rather not do that unless I absolutely have to." She got serious for just a moment, memories flashing in her head. "If I ever do bite someone, cover your ears and don't stick around."

She took a short, shaky breath to rid herself of the bad feeling before giving Kielo a small, friendly nudge. "Yes, Kielo, very tough. You'll be fine. We'll be fine." She tried everything in her power to believe in her own words. She wanted them to be alright and she wanted to believe that they would be.

When I speak.

When I think.

@Kielo

Kielo gave an obedient nod, ears perking curiously. "Th-though if things go wrong, I couldn't leave you on your own... I'd wanna help and keep you safe, somehow." A worried twinge passed through the hybrid's expression. "Because what if..." they cut themselves off with a small shake of their head. "...W-well, we can work on that later!"

The young hybrid turned their attention to the snake's next words, and looked flattered for a moment. Clearly, they hadn't been expecting Winter to say that they looked tough. "Oh! I am? Well, that's good then!" The look that passed over their face though, showed a flicker of worry. "...I'm not scary, am I? Do you think I might look too tough, and scare people? I hope that doesn't stop others from wanting to make friends with me," they mused worriedly.

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"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

tags: @Winter
notes: here

Winter shook her head, letting out a small, soft ring of laughter. "Don't worry about it, Kielo. You're not scary, you look beautiful. I don't think any gembound in their right mind wouldn't want to be friends with you." Embarrassment didn't even come this time. She didn't even realize what she had said and so she passed it off without really thinking about it.

"And don't worry, if you go ahead while I deal with the problem, I'll catch up with you. I can move pretty fast you know!" Her hood flared with pride as she remembered the speed in which she could move, how fast she had reacted in the fight with the goose and how, even with a stone in her back, she could move fast enough to make it to Polaris.

She settled down a moment later, letting her hood release back to normal.
"But for now, we should probably get ready. If you don't mind, I'm going to go out and hunt some more. I'd...I'd rather do it by myself this time."

"And still I feel I said too much."
"My silence is my self defense."

Tags: @Kielo
Notes:

Kielo fluffed their feathers, their skin flushing with pleased embarrassment at the compliment. "Oh, thank you!" they trilled, with a nervous giggle. They found themselves musing, wondering how they looked for the first time in a long while. they'd learned in their cycles not to dwell on their lack of sight, and so the thought was uninhibited by bitterness or pain; but they were curious. Sight was, after all, so different to any sensory experience they'd felt in their short existence. And winter, no doubt, perceived them very differently.

"I bet we'll make lots of friends," Kielo said then, their ears perking at the thought. They'd met so many in Polaris already; they could hardly wait to see what awaited them in the world beyond.

"A-alright then! but if you don't catch up, I'll come back for you," they assured her, with a hint of firmness in their voice as they softly stomped an avian paw. "I'm not gonna leave you all on your own forever, especially not when you're in danger."

They nodded slowly as Winter said that she would go hunt. "Alright. Are you sure you'll be okay? I'll be right here if you need any help, you know. Even if it's a little tough."

_________________________________________________________

"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

tags: @Winter
notes: here

Winter didn't respond to the thanks, her tongue merely flicked out with bashfulness. She liked making Kielo happy and she was quickly learning how to do it. However, there was a part of her that didn't like the openness, the weakening to compliment others. But its not weakness. I'm being nice and I want her to be happy. How is that weak?

Winter sighed before nodding. She knew that she couldn't argue with Kielo, with that tone of firmness. She just hoped that it wouldn't come to it. She hated biting and the memory of the goose screaming with pain still rang through her head. She never wanted Kielo to hear anything like that.

But she shook herself out, letting her coil completely unravel, and letting the bad feelings wash away. She needed to focus on the hunt. "Yeah, I'll be fine. If I need anything I'll come back to you, I promise." Though her heart ached to be seperate from Kielo, even for a little bit, she turned away and slid off. "I'll be back soon!"

*exit Winter

"And still I feel I said too much."
"My silence is my self defense."

Tags: @Kielo
Notes:

Kielo grinned in gentle farewell, their ears perking. "I'll see you soon, then!" they said, listening to the sound of her slithering away until the snake was out of earshot.

They settled down against the ground to wait, the suddenly unfamiliar feeling of being alone enclosing them, their wings shivering softly.

For some time they lingered where Winter had left them, until the remnants of mouse blood had dried into their fur and the fur upon their cheeks became matted with drying tears. They became thirsty, and realized that they'd eaten little since they'd stumbled upon Winter. A lick of their lips found some of the gory remnants of the hunt, and they shuddered, slowly and hesitantly making their way to the nearby river for a rest and a well-deserved draught of water.

-exit Kielo-

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"Speech looks like this."
Thoughts look like this.

tags:
notes: here

Pages: 1 2 3 4