I Can Help Too! (Aello)

[Alenias]

Season of Summer, Day 12, 511 AV

The wind felt wonderful against Alenias' feathers as she flew over the forest, her dark eyes going back and forth over the forest floor as she looked for something to help Aello to hunt for food.

Alenias sang out happily as she circled above the trees, giving voice to her overwhelming happiness. Being with Aello had brought so much fun and happiness to the Kelvic that she found it amazing. Being in the wilderness, flying around, and the exciting adventures they had! It was much better than just wandering around Nitrozian Plaza looking for pretty or interesting things.

Some movement down below caught Alenias' eye, and she swooped down to get a better look. There was a nice big rabbit! Briefly she thought about trying to catch it herself, but she didn't want to risk just scaring it away. So she turned and flew back above the trees and in the direction she had left Aello.

After a few chimes she spotted Aello again, and a after a quick dive down and a swirl of light and color she stood next to the woman in her human form, "Aello! I found a nice big rabbit for you," she turned and pointed into the forest, "It's that way, eating some plants."

[Aello]

Aello was walking as silently as she could through the forest; stepping over fallen branches so as to keep them from snapping beneath her weight, and around dried leaves, so that they would not be crushed, and produce a crackling noise. Yune was perched upon her left shoulder, her tiny talons digging lightly into the girl's flesh, a constant reminder that she was indeed there, and not to be forgotten. Or else. Aello's bag was strewn over her shoulder, resting towards the left side of her back, while her quiver rested in the center. The feathers that fletched each of her arrows swaying softly in the breeze, which trickled through the line of trees. In her left hand, Aello was gripping the center of her bow. In the right, she held the bowstring. The three middle fingers of her right hand wrapped around a raven-feather fletched arrow, the two upper most fingers above the arrow, the one on the bottom, below it. She was pointing the bow down at the ground, the arrow headed towards a space only a few inches before her feet. The bowstring was pulled back only slightly, enough to make it curve, enough to make it dig into Aello's fingers, turning them bright red, but nothing more. "Hey Yune, you don't see Alenias anywhere, do you?" Aello asked, as she glanced up at the sky, wondering where the Kelvic could have gotten to. Chirp Chirp! "She has been gone for awhile, hasn't she?" The sparrow seemed to nod its head in agreement as Aello turned her head back down, to face the line of trees that seemed to stretch out endlessly before her, in every direction. "Well hopefully, she will be back soon, and have some idea as to where we should go to find something to eat... we haven't seen much of anything today, have we? Just a few birds the same size as you, not at all fit to eat," the girl commented, with the slightest of smiles, a mysterious gleam in her eye as she peered over at the bird on her shoulder. Chirp! Chirp! Chirp! Chirp! "Oh calm down you, you're going to make our presence known," Aello scolded. The bird chirped once more, before it began to rapidly flap its wings, as though it were excited. "What's wrong love?" Aello asked, as a muffled thud reached her ears, and a flash invaded the corners of her vision. Instantly, Aello turned to face the direction in which she heard the noise. Standing before her was a girl only a little taller than she, wearing naught but her own skin. "Well hello Alenias," Aello greeted with a small chuckle. She was still getting used to the excitement contained within the girl's greetings; and how she looked directly after she had shifted. "That's... great!" she stammered, as her cheeks began to turn red. Now why couldn't we find anything? Aello wondered, before determining that her friend looked far more approachable than she, and the animals had probably all fled her and her scent in fear. "Would you like to lead the way?" Aello asked, as she began to head in the direction Alenias had indicated, "or would you like to fall back with us slow-going folk, and get there whenever we get there?"

[Alenias]

"I'll stay with you, Aello!" Alenias said brightly in response to Aello's question, taking a moment to reclaim and put back on her tattered cloak from Aello's pack.

Walking along with Aello through the forest Alenias did her best to be silent, carefully watching where she placed her bare feat on the forest floor, and breathing slowly in and out of her nose. Since her first time hunting with Aello and Nex she had come to regard the whole thing as a type of game, a game that she took very seriously. She had to be quiet now, but when the time came later she could be loud, and maybe even try to catch the rabbit this time!

Several chimes passed in silence, Alenias stalking by alongside Aello, and they were getting close to where she had seen the rabbit. Leaning over close to Aello Alenias whispered, "It should be close."

Peering into the clearing Alenias spotted the rabbit, still sitting there and nibbling on the bush like she had left it. Her heart beat faster in excitement as she pointed it out for Aello, but there was something off. Something was giving her a bad feeling, but she didn't know what. She frowned slightly as she tried to figure it out, and when she did finally realize it things still didn't make much sense. Why would the birds not singing above be bad? It was like that a lot in Ravok.

[Aello]

Aello tip-toed after Alenias, making sure to always keep the girl in her line of sight. Her muffled footsteps within ear shot as she followed her across the forest floor, careful to stay out of the way of branches and crunchy leaves, so as not to alert anyone or anything to their presence. Surely we cannot have all that much farther to walk, Aello thought, finding the walk and their silence all the more dreadful. She just wanted to find the rabbit, and get everything over with so that she could listen to someone's voice, anyone's voice; including Yune's. She was not gone that long, and this forest isn't too large... we should be there soon; assuming that rabbit Alenias spotted hasn't hopped off to a better part of the forest or something. Finally, after what felt like ages to the impatient Aello, the two came to a clearing, and just as Alenias had said, there was a rabbit. "Good work," Aello mouthed, as she lifted her bow and closed her left eye. Slowly, she inched the bowstring back, letting the pressure of it on her fingertips turn her flesh red. She moved the bow an inch to the right, allowing the tip of the arrow to rest in the center of the rabbit's back. There was no wind in the woods; nothing to make the arrow sway from its path. Aello's breath caught in her throat, as she pulled the string past her right ear, she was just about to let go when she noticed a bright yellow mist winding its way off the Kelvic's skin, and towards her own. It was as though the aura were trying to tap Aello on the shoulder; to draw her attention to something. Hesitantly, she let up on the bowstring, and turned to face Alenias, but only for a moment. Now why would she be feeling afraid and uncertain? Aello wondered, as she glanced around their surroundings. She, Yune, the rabbit, and Alenias seemed to be the only things around. Shrugging her shoulders, and deeming it nothing but the Kelvic's nerves; perhaps for the impending death and spilt blood, Aello turned back to the rabbit, and pulled farther back on the bowstring. She was barely breathing when she let go of it, the arrow erupting off the string and towards the rabbit. The string was sent into a series of rapid, wild vibrations, that produced a low humming sound, and at times, would whack the flesh between Aello's left elbow and wrist. The arrow was flying true; the rabbit's deep brown eyes wide open- for now it saw death in its wake. OOCI figured I'd let you control the rabbit for the most part... and erm... the surroundings.

[Alenias]

Alenias' heart was pounding as she watched Aello ready and fire her bow, her dark eyes watching the rabbit in case this one could use magic too. Time seemed to slow as the arrow streaked towards the rabbit, and the small creature started to move to get away from something. Instead of bounding away from the oncoming arrow the rabbit turned and jumped right into it, and the movement caused the arrow to catch the rabbit in the chest instead of the back.

Even as the rabbit fell to the ground, dead, a dog emerged from the nearby underbrush charging for it. This was no wolf, like the two had encountered before, but instead seemed more like a feral dog. It's brown and black fur was a mess, and it seemed to move with the desperation of a very hungry animal as it ran towards the dead rabbit.

Alenias felt a burst of anger as she saw the dog running towards the rabbit, it was for Aello, and without even thinking she ran forward as well. Bursting into the clearing noisily she yelled loudly at the dog, "Hey! That's Aello's rabbit! Leave it alone, she doesn't like dogs chewing on her food!"

The sudden appearance of Alenias started the wild dog a bit, and it stopped its charge towards the rabbit quickly. Crouching down it bared its teeth as it growled loudly at Alenias, obviously trying to scare her off.

[Aello]

Aello lowered her bow just as the feral dog darted from the undergrowth. Her eyes grew wide when she took in the nature of the beast's coat, and just how crazed and hungry it appeared. Well that can't be a good sign, she thought, as she reached for another arrow with her right hand. Mere seconds later, she was pulling a raven-feather fletched arrow from her quiver, and knocking it onto her bow. When she heard a low clicking sound, Aello raised her bow once more, and stepped out from behind the underbrush. She was pulling the string back, causing it to creak as she spoke, "you know Alenias, you might want to get out of the way. That thing doesn't look too friendly, or even remotely happy to see you." There was a slight pause as Aello drew in a deep breath through the nose, and then let it out slowly through the mouth, with a sigh. "Or me for that matter," she added, as though it were an afterthought. Aello's muscles continued to tense as she stared at the snarling dog. Its eyes were blazing, and a thin trickle of saliva was pouring out of the side of its slightly parted lips. Aello moved her bow, slowly, slightly to the left, aiming it at the space just between its eyes. "Oh, so you're going to keep snarling at us, are you?" Aello asked, her eyes sparkling as a smirk crossed her lips. "Well that's not very nice now is it? You mangy mutt... now what do you say you turn around with your tail between your legs and get the heck out of our way?" she asked, finding it only mildly surprising that she was talking to a wild dog. After all, they could be reasoned with, and talked down just like humans right? They could be intimidated. "Unless of course, you want to have an arrow lodged in your brain," Aello went on, as she inched the bowstring even farther back, causing it to leave a bright red imprint in her flesh from the pressure she had been exerting. "And trust me when I say that I wouldn't mind putting one there. As you can tell from the rabbit we just knocked off." There was a slight pause in which Aello never took her eyes off the dog, although she began to address the Kelvic. "What do you say Alenias, do you think it'd make a nice fur coat? Or should we leave it for the wolves to feast on?" OOCI can't believe the majority of this post involves my pc talking to a petching dog. What the heck is her life coming to?

[Alenias]

The dog was definitely scary, Alenias' body shivered with the desire to fly away from the growling beat, but her anger that it would try and take Aello's food was greater than her instinct. Still, when Aello said she should move Alenias moved, slowly moving sideways as she continued to glare at the dog, "Well, I'm not happy to see it either."

As Aello talked to the dog Alenias continued to glare at the beast, her mouth in as fierce a grimace as she could manage as she slowly started to advance towards it. She couldn't growl like a dog to try and scare it off, and so she settled for yelling, "Go! Leave the rabbit or Aello will shoot you and I'll... I'll punch you!" her hands clenched into fists as she brought them up like Aello had shown her.

The dog didn't back down, apparently its hunger over powering the threat the two girls represented, and it let out several angry barks in response to their threatening words. Alenias jumped slightly at the barks, but didn't back away. She wouldn't give up Aello's food so easily!

"It's fur looks yucky, but maybe it would be nice if we cleaned it," Alenias replied to Aello, her glare still firmly on the dog, "I don't think anything would want to eat it."

After a tense moment the dog apparently decided to try and grab the rabbit, and it jumped forward. Alenias moved shortly after it did and brought her fist down and punched the beast strongly on the side of its head. It hurt, but it hurt the dog as well, and it yelped as it jumped back. It didn't take it long to recover however, and it snapped at Alenias as she jumped back and away from its flashing teeth.

OOCWell, I think it's pretty understandable since her two main companions are both Kelvics.

[Aello]

Aello's eyes flashed menacingly as her lips curled into an evil grin. She was not about to back down and let some mangy mutt take her meal. "Go on, keep on growling you nasty thing. You're not scaring anybody. Yes, your teeth may be sharp, but they can easily be dislodged; ripped right out of your mouth. And once they're gone, what will you have? Some petching weak claws, not at all as refined and sharp as those of a feline. More than likely chipped at the edges, and covered in dirt and grime; just like the rest of you." There was a slight pause as Aello's grin grew even wider, "which means that you will be left defenseless, doesn't it? At which point, it will be oh so much easier to fill your body with holes; and when that's done, we won't mind gutting you. We've got just the bloody blade that'll do the trick." The dog kept on snarling, inching its body closer and closer down to the ground, as though it were getting ready to lunge at Aello. But the young spiritist did not move. "Well aren't you a stubborn little thing?" Aello asked, her voice highly amused. After all, what could a beast that looked like that do to her anyway? "You honestly think you can have that rabbit, don't you? How amusing," she continued, her voice playful. "Tell you what, if you get the petch away from us, perhaps we'll leave you its nice, fluffy, cotton tail. What do you say doggy? Is it a deal? Or are you going to insist on getting shot?" Aello asked. The dog kept snarling, its long, sharp white teeth glistening with saliva. "Very well then, if that's what you want..." Aello's voice trailed off. "Can't say we didn't warn you." With that, Aello let go of the bowstring, the arrow erupting off of it and towards the wild dog. The string was vibrating rapidly, humming as Aello reached for another arrow to re-load. Within a few seconds, she was lacing the second raven-feather fletched arrow and preparing for her next shot. Two or three should bring it down. She wrapped the three middle fingers of her right hand around the arrow and began pulling back on the string. Lets just hope that mangy thing takes a bit to get here; gives us time to aim. OOCRound two of talking to a petching dog. Also, I figured you could control the dog... since Aello is fighting it. *shrugs* It just seems more fair.

[Alenias]

The wild dog jumped forward at the last moment, charging at Aello with a snarl, and because of that the arrow struck the wolf's left eye instead of between them. The best yelped in pain, pausing a moment to paw at the shaft protruding from its head, but it couldn't do anything to help the fact that it was now half blind with one ruined eye.

Still, that didn't stop it from charging towards Aello again, but this time Alenias moved. Aello was still getting her next arrow ready, and so she had to do something to help! With an angry yell the Kelvic charged forward and kicked at the dog's side with all the force she could.

The dog yelped again as it was sent staggering to the side, running headlong into a thick bush that stopped its movement, but still it didn't seem to be enough to stop it. It growled angrily as it stumbled out of the bush, and quickly turned its attention to Alenias. Now favoring her left foot, her right hurting from the kick, the Blue Jay Kelvic did her best to growl back at the dog as she clenched her fists, "Leave Aello alone! I won't let you hurt her!"

Almost as if in reply the dog barked at Alenias, and then dashed towards her. It's fangs glistened with saliva and a bit of blood as it moved to try and at least stop one of its attackers from hurting it any more.

OOCYes, well, at least Alenias has been talking along with you to the Dog. d;

[Aello]

Darn it Alenias, what are you doing? Aello wondered as the dog lunged at her, but then was kicked in the side by her Kelvic. Is she trying to get her leg bitten off? Or simply trying to help by distracting that mangy thing long enough for us to reload the bow, aim, and get another petching shot in? Because, apparently, blinding it in one eye isn't enough to teach it a lesson, Aello thought as she lifted her bow, and closed her left eye again. Imitating the partial blindness of the dog. She began pulling the bowstring back even farther as she continued to lift her bow, trying to perfect her aim. "Stand your ground Alenias, until the very last second," Aello instructed as she quickly moved her bow in the Kelvic's direction, following the charging dog. Hoping the girl knew well enough to shift and get the petch out of the way at the very last second. Aello's heart was pounding when she finally let go of the bowstring, sending the arrow towards the dog's flank. She aimed for its center, but judging by how quickly the creature was moving, she would more than likely strike its hind leg, or perhaps, just above it. Hopefully that will keep it from getting its grubby paws any closer to her, Aello thought as she lowered her bow again, and reached for another raven-feather fletched arrow. Quickly lacing it onto her bow, and preparing for her next attack. OOCAhh yes, that does make everything so much better =)