Kielo trilled a pleased sound at yet another compliment, their sightless eyes closing and nose wrinkling in glee. "Yes, I did!" they said, with a bob of their head akin to a nod- far more bird than canid-like. "When everything was alright, all the fear faded and I had the chance to think clearly, I realized that it'd been there all along. Kielo!" They trilled their name in jubilant exclamation.

The little one giggled as they were nudged once more. "Young? Yes, yes! I have only just hatched! Got lost after, though. Been wandering, since. Have you?" Kielo sniffed again, but their scent gave nothing away. Kielo felt relieved and exuberant alike to have met another one like them- not just of a similar mindset but of a similar age. Oh, there was so much that they could experience for the first time, and experience together, too!

"The world is so huge, isn't it?"

---

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

tags: @Azar
notes: here

Azar
It's a new world
It's a new start
And it's alive with the beating of a young heart

Azar nodded his fuzzy head at this comment. "The world is big," he agreed pleasantly, with a proud lift of his muzzle. He enjoyed meeting new friends, it was fun. Azar smiled at Kielo once again, fascinated by this strange gembound. He didn't want to speak, not straight away, because he wanted to know more without coming across as nosy. The young fox gave Kielo another friendly lick on the ear, his heart pounding in his chest. He was so happy to be in the company of another, and so curious! Azar licked his whiskers. "How long have you been here, like this? It's very sad, you know.'" Azar gave a satisfied squealing sound.



"Speech."
"Thoughts."


@azar

Kielo nodded, finally settling back on their scaly haunches, backside sinking comfortably down into the soft moss covering the cave floor in a pool of bedraggled baby feathers. They seemed far more comfortable now, gangly legs lifting and falling, claws sinking into the soft earth."I've wandered for so long, but I've never found the ends. Can you see the ends of the world with sight?" They shuddered slightly, not sure if they'd be happier feeling the world was endless, or knowing that the world had boundaries enclosing them. It would certainly be easier to navigate knowing that you'd reached the edge, or the wall, and could follow it to where you needed to go; but they'd encountered nothing of the sort, yet. That being said, they could always hear the rushing of a river just beyond their perception, and instinctively knew that they'd need to head for it soon to quench their thirst.

Kielo was distracted from these thoughts by another lick on the ear, and they raised a scaly paw to give the fox a playful nudge, wings fluttering at their shoulders; clearly, this was their equivalent of an excited tail wag, given that they had only feathers and no true tail. A pink tongue lolled out, and their body wriggled softly, glow brightening into a sheer, joyous white light. "I don't know! Feels like a long time, though." they answered honestly, ears tilting back and eyes closing in thought. They didn't open back up for a while. "Sad? What's sad?"

The little one seemed surprised, and confused. There had never been a moment of true sadness in their life so far; they'd never known sight, and so there was nothing to regret.

---

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

tags: @Azar
notes: here

Azar
It's a new world
It's a new start
And it's alive with the beating of a young heart

Azar shuddered. "Sadness?" He whispered. "I suppose it is a bit difficult to understand, if you've never experienced it; I'm not so familiar with sadness myself.." Azar's paws ached terribly as he recalled the only time he'd ever been truly sad, right after hatching when Astaroth had shown him that dead fox. That had been his only moment of depression, of loneliness. Azar didn't want his new friend to suffer that; not ever. "I don't want you to ever be sad, Kielo, not ever. Don't be sad, Kielo..."




"Speech."
"Thoughts."


@Kielo

Kielo fell silent for a while. "I know what sadness is. I just... Why is it sad to watch? What is sad about this?" the pup seemed confused and concerned, and as they spoke, they inched closer to Azar until one wing was lightly touching the other's hide. It seemed as though there was something else there; something they didn't want to talk about. Kielo sensed hesitation, and remained quiet for quite some time. When they finally spoke, there wasn't sadness in their voice, but understanding, their sightless eyes bright with kindness and their glow dropping until it was soft, only just enough to see by. "When I hatched, I was stuck. I thought I might never get out. I woke up among the bones of... well... they must have been a parent. And... someone had made them a tomb."

They remembered the words of the small bird who'd saved them, knowing that if they'd not happened to chance upon them, they would still be stuck in there; and perhaps they'd not be alive at all, anymore. Kielo was quiet for another long while, ears lowered flat against their skull.

"I think it's okay to be sad. I mean, we can't help it, after all." Kielo shot onto all four paws, stamping an avian paw decisively. "But if I do get sad, then you can help me through it, right? Just like I can help you! And then we won't be sad for long! That's good, right?"


---

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

tags: @Azar
notes: here

Azar
It's a new world
It's a new start
And it's alive with the beating of a young heart

"After I hatched, I had a fantastic teacher. His name was Astaroth, and he was very kind to me. Our first lesson, however, was brutal and demonstrated a display of something I had never seen before. A dead fox, lying there with broken ribs and a deathly expression. I didn't want to turn out like them, I didn't want anyone to turn out like them." Azar finished his story with a bitter tone, nostalgia cloaking his voice. Azar felt safe telling Kielo everything, they were reliable and trustworthy. "Kielo, I don't think it's fair. You'll die blind, you'll never see me or anymore of your friends. That's why I was sad earlier. Tell me, Kielo, do you have many friends? I understand that you are young, but you are very interesting and friendly. Perhaps you even have some admirers by now.." Azar chuckled to himself; he certainly had no admirers or friends. Kielo was the only gembound, discluding Astaroth, that he had ever felt a connection with. Azar wanted to stay with Kielo, because Kielo's presence brought him joy and comfort. He wished Kielo had functional eyes, he wished Kielo could see his orange fur and brown eyes.



"Speech."
"Thoughts."


@Kielo

Kielo listened, quiet, patient and intent, with ears perked. however, as they reached the end of their story, Kielo let out a sharp gasp, their avian voice high-pitched with shock. "How awful!" they cried, rubbing their nose comfortingly into Azar's fur. The feathers along the hybrid's back ruffled upright, showing more pink skin and puppyfat beginning to grow wispy white hairs.

Kielo listened, and thought for a while, and then shook their head. "I'll never know what sight is like. How can I be sad if I don't know how something feels? Sure I might not see you, but I can hear you, and smell you, and feel your warmth and your fur. Isn't that enough to be happy?" Kielo's voice showed no trace of a lie, and they knew for certain that they'd never regret being born without sight. Sure, things might be more difficult at first, but they were already beginning to learn their way around. there was the soft hum of the lights and the burbling of the river that gave this world substance and composition. One day, perhaps, they'd be able to explore it all on their own.

"You're the second I've met, Azar. The first was a little bird, they saved me. They got me out of the tomb. I liked that little bird. Maybe they're watching out for me." Kielo smiled warmly as they thought of the little bird, remembering the trill of their voice and penchant for shiny things. Everything relied so heavily on sight in this world; it was almost sad. Perhaps everyone would be happier if they were blind, too? Then perhaps, they would be able to see what really mattered. "A-admirers? I don't know what you mean!"

---

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

tags: @Azar
notes: here

Azar
It's a new world
It's a new start
And it's alive with the beating of a young heart

Azar gave a small shrug to indicate his confusion. "I don't quite now myself what I meant by it, maybe it's just a word I came up with." Azar was sure it was a real word, though, was sure he had heard it shortly after his hatching. He pressed his muzzle against his friend's fur, because he was sorry for confusing them and needed comfort.

Azar had always enjoyed the darkness in his sleep. He saw that same darkness now, as he pushed further into Kielo's soft fur. He imagined being blind, forever only seeing darkness; never seeing faces. The blind could be so easily deceived, or that's what Azar thought as he whimpered, his voice muffled.

When Azar finally revealed himself again, he felt a lot better. "Thank you, Kielo," He murmured politely, his head spinning a bit as he lay down once more, wrapping his tail carefully around his body. He finally had a friend, and that emotion was a joyous one. The fox cub lifted his muzzle to the roof of the cave proudly, a purr rising from his throat.



"Speech."
"Thoughts."

@Kielo

Kielo chirped quietly as Azar's nose was buried in their fur, wings fluttering once more. Without a moment's hesitation they once more plopped back into a sitting position, wispy baby feathers pooling around their rump."That's okay!" they said eagerly, with a little chuckle. They thought again. "Well, if it means someone who admires you then I'm one of your admirers! You're really nice. I hope there are more in the world like you!"

Kielo remained still as the canid buried their face in their feathery hide, tongue lolling out in contentment. They enjoyed the contact, feeling warmth and happiness at their closeness. They thought that the feeling of contact, of fur that was warm and soft and a friendly voice in the ear, was the most wonderful feeling in the world. Their ears swiveled towards their friend as they caught the fox's low whimper. Immeditately, Kielo twitched alert. "What's wrong?"

When the fox lifted away, the hybrid tilted their head, curiosity written plain on their face. They sniffed the air, hearing them settling down on the ground, and the hybrid allowed themselves to drop down onto their belly, too. They blinked their delicate pink eyes, violet pupils twitching and flickering, betraying their every thought. Nervousness. Happiness. Uncertainty.

"Oh? That's no problem! Thank you, too!" they answered excitedly, although they weren't sure what Azar was thanking them for. The young hybrid thought that friendship needed no words. They knew that the feeling in their heart was enough.

---

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

tags: @Azar
notes: here

Azar
It's a new world
It's a new start
And it's alive with the beating of a young heart

Azar yawned, his eyelids sticky with tiredness. He blinked, nose sniffing empty air. "How do you know where we are, Kielo? You can't see Polaris." Azar hoped that he hadn't offended the hybrid in his comment, it was genuine curiosity and he wanted to find out everything. He wondered if Kielo had ever seen colour, or whether he was born blind. He didn't deserve that, and Azar felt a pang just thinking about it. Born in a black world, with only sounds and smells to guide them...
"That's horrible, Kielo."
Azar wished he could carry some of Kielo's burden, but he knew that was impossible. Kielo had learnt how to live life to the fullest, even with out their sight. They truly were an interesting hybrid.
"You are very unique, Kielo, and I do not mean that in a bad way." Azar playfully pushed at Kielo with one of his soft white-tipped paws.



"Speech."
"Thoughts."

@Kielo