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Khida
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The hawk shapes the wind
and the curve of the wind
Like eggs lie the great gold hills
in the curve of the world
to that keen eye
excerpt from "For Ted"
Ursula K. Le Guin
Female
Kelvic peregrine falcon
born Spring 13, 510 AV
7 years old
appears early-30s, as human
and the curve of the wind
Like eggs lie the great gold hills
in the curve of the world
to that keen eye
excerpt from "For Ted"
Ursula K. Le Guin
Female
Kelvic peregrine falcon
born Spring 13, 510 AV
7 years old
appears early-30s, as human
Description
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Standing 5' 5" tall as a human, Khida is on the shorter side. Her build is slight even for her height, all sharp angles and wiry muscle without an ounce of extra mass -- yet her demeanor is anything but small. Khida's amber eyes, framed by high cheekbones and a determined chin, regard the world with a direct boldness as innocent of propriety as of fear. She moves with self-confidence and an innate athletic grace -- yet takes no particular pride in her own appearance: not with black hair cropped indifferently just past her shoulders, her clothing typically unadorned and plain in hue. Khida smiles rarely, and wields a mean stare.
Less typically obvious is the windmark on Khida's left calf, received Spring 515 in recognition of her bond with the Strider mare Sephra. This stark black tattoo is a triad of spirals, their edges just touching at the mark's center, with curved streaks arcing out from their opposite sides in a manner suggesting currents of wind.
As a peregrine, Khida's four-foot wingspan ranks among the larger of her kind. She has the classic hood and 'moustache' markings of a peregrine, but in a shade closer to charcoal than the traditional slate-gray. The plumage on the falcon's black is the same uniform gray, while her underside is ashen, speckled liberally with darker bars. Her yellow beak terminates in a wicked black hook, echoing the black talons on her feet, and her eyes are gleaming black orbs ringed by gold.
Personality
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Khida will fight when cornered or forced to protect something she considers important, but like most winged things will fly away at the first chance if she doesn't have to make a stand. She lives in the present: past actions are exactly that, and the future may never arrive. That isn't to say all offenses are forgiven after the fact, though -- if an offense is serious enough to matter to her, Khida gives exactly zero second chances.
Buildings and Khida don't always get along -- if she has to be inside them, that is. She's fine with large rooms, rooms with open windows, and rooms with not too many people, but small rooms and crowded spaces make her skin twitch. Doubly so if she can't see the sky. It's not true claustrophobia, in that Khida will not suffer a panic attack; but she gets edgy and uneasy, and mostly just avoids such situations altogether.
