Open If Stars Can Fly, Than Why Can't I?

[Enria]

29th Summer 513AV

The day had been slow with Enria whittling down the hours in the Enclave. Enria had gone in there for the peace and quiet so that she could concentrate and be alone with her thoughts. Recently, Enria had begun questioning what it was she truly wanted. Did she want to see what life was like outside Wind Reach or did she want to work hard and eventually become an Avora? Eventually she got frustrated by going around in circles. There were many possibilities about what could happen whichever path she choose. But what really bothered Enria was that she didn’t know what it was she actually wanted.

Enria then spent the last three bells drawing. She had drawn different birds from sparrows right up to eagles, though she wasn’t quite happy with the shading on the eagles; before she moved on to drawing people. She had tried in the past to draw people but always go frustrated because she could never crack how to draw the outline of a person’s face or their hair. So often she had just drawn the face that wasn’t constricted to the borders of a jawline or the frame of unruly hair. Today she had tried to focus on drawing the shape of the face as well as hair. But after her seventh attempt, she had given up and closed her book. She deposited it in her bag and decided to head to the canteen. She left the Enclave more frustrated than when she entered and with a throbbing headache for her effort.

After hurriedly walking to the canteen, in an attempt to get there before the queue for food got out of hand; but she found her efforts were in vain. As she walked into the large room, the smell of food wafting up her nostrils making her stomach growl in protest, she saw the large snake-like queue. Grumbling, she joined the end of the queue and folded her arms of her chest. Today was not her day, it seemed.

Once she collected her food from the service hatch, she scanned the room for an empty table. She was not in the mood for company tonight. She kept her eyes fixed on her food, her fork digging around the plate. She had suddenly lost interest in her food but it was better to eat something now than want something later when it was too late to grab a bite to eat.

Her headache seemed to ease off a bit, despite the usual chatter of the canteen. But her mood had not improved; she still felt frustrated at how lost and indecisive she was. She sighed; it was useless to keep going over and over it. She’d gotten nowhere the last time she focused on it too much so what made her think that considering it over dinner would help her problem.

After only managing a few mouthfuls, Enria admitted defeat and left the canteen a little after sunset. As she emerged outside, she saw a flash of light fly across the sky before another then another appeared. A deep and purple hued sky and twinkling stars served as a backdrop to the lights streaking across the sky. She’d never really seen something like this before and gasped at how beautiful it was as if it were the only beautiful thing she’d ever seen. It was while watching this for a few moments, Enria made a decision about what she was going to do. If stars can fly, than why can’t I? She thought.

[Zevi]

Growls bubbled in his stomach, but the sensation wasn't unfamiliar. It was so familiar, in fact, that it wasn't even uncomfortable - just vaguely irritating, like a friend who never stopped talking. Not that Zevi ever had a problem with finding a meal; as an Avora, food was readily provided for him at almost any time he desired, and of a surprisingly fine quality at that. But, as with many others, this night Zevi had missed the allotted standard time of the evening meal, and he wasn't inclined to bother to cooks this late just for him alone. It wasn't as if he would starve from one missed meal.

Therefore it wasn't so odd that the fourteen year old apprentice was to be found, when the meteors started falling, lying on his back in an unattended corner of the Courtyard of the Sky, staring upwards. It wasn't the first night he'd spent stargazing, and it certainly wouldn't be his last - indeed, so long had he spent looking at the sky that he could judge the time just by the positions of Leth and his stars.

But then the meteors came down, diving like an eagle hunting, and Zevi felt exhilaration burst to life in his chest. He sat up sharply, eyes widening, lips coming silently apart. Twinkling under the fiery reflections of the comets, his gold-green eyes tracked as many as he possibly could, all at once, searching, seeking... nay, praying that he might be afforded a glimpse of one clearly.

Igniting with his wonder was a new, forceful determination of his dream: to be an Endal. One day, he would be just like those meteors. He would leap from the highest peaks of Mount Skyinarta and his Wind Eagle would strike the sky beneath them with talons as sharp as a blade and they would pierce the very heavens themselves.

One day.

[Enria]

One day.

Enria thought to herself as she wandered around the town; she wasn’t sure where she was heading, just that she was walking. Her headache had diminished to a dull thrumming, as it was slowly fading away. Her thoughts instead of being clouded like a heavy fog, seemed to be becoming clearer like the fog was lifting.

She ended up near the Nesting Area but she didn’t enter it for fear she may disturb the birds. She envied them though. They seemed free, not confined to the ground like she was. They could fly above the sky to anywhere if they wanted to. But Enria couldn’t, not yet. If she left she wouldn’t survive long in the wilderness. She could feel the fog settling around her again, her thoughts clouding up like the sky does just before a big thunderstorm.

It occurred to her, as she stood there, that the birds never left for too long; they always came home. Would she be the same if she left her nest? Home is where the heart is. Would she really be able to live somewhere else? Have a different home. Or would she always be missing this home because no matter where she went, Wind Reach would always be her home. She has friends here and if she left them behind, there’d be no guarantee that they’d ever see each other again. Did she really just want to up sticks and leave? Just say goodbye and that be it?

Besides didn’t she want to be an Avora? Something she dreamed of being since she was a Yasi. Did she really want to walk away from a childish dream like that, only to regret it later on? Possibly when it was too late and she was too far away to realise her mistake. But then was she sure that she wanted to be an Avora or did she expect that would be where she’d end up if she stayed in Wind Reach for most if not all of her life? Slowly working up the ranks, until…Until, what? What was she saying? Did she want to be an Endal, eventually? She had no honest answer to that.

Maybe, one day.

Just when Enria thought she had solved her dilemma, she was right back at square one. When she was confronted by the same questions, she was at a loss of how to answer them. Where would she go if she left? Would she ever come back? Did she still want to be an Avora? Or, more importantly, was she ready to be one? She didn’t focus too much on the possibility of being an Endal because she wasn’t entirely sure that’s what she wanted, yet.

One day I might know which direction to take.

She sighed; standing around here was not going to help. She began walking away from the Nesting Area with her thoughts still circling around her, much like a vulture circles their prey.

If only there were someone like me that I could talk to about this; she thought. Someone that understands.

[Zevi]

Zevi couldn't honestly say how long had passed since he first lay down - how long it had been since he'd seen the first meteor arc across the sky. They were truly beautiful, in a melancholy sort of way. They left blazing trails of purple and red and even sometimes blue, sparks raining from their tails. It almost seemed that Zevi could stand on tiptoe and touch them sometimes. Perhaps, in hindsight, he was simply so focused on their wonder that all else in his vision was stripped away. He could feel the wind in his hair, whipping it back from his face and body, ripping at the thick braid on the side of his head. Would the little glass beads and bluejays hurt at that speed? Falling at terminal velocity was a terrifying concept in and of itself, never mind if you had a bird with you. Surely the glass would be painful against his scalp. Might it even shatter?

Even though these thoughts ignited a spark of nervousness - and how that image played against the sky full of other-worldly fireworks - Zevi felt his heart flutter in excitement. He dearly wanted the answers to those questions. He wanted them so badly he could almost taste it; yearning had a miserable flavour, like ash and metal shavings mixed together in molasses. The wind blowing past his Wind Eagle's feathers would taste infinitely sweeter. So much so was Zevi enthralled by the meteors, by his own fantasies of flight, that he almost felt he had wings himself - arching from his back in powerful lines.

A sharp sting on his hand broke his reverie. The thoughts and feelings peeled away from him like boiled meat fell from bone; the phantom wings he had been so sure he could feel imploded into dust. Looking sideways, he was met with an accusing stare from one amber-brown eye, glittering in the shower of light from above. A bead of blood welled up from the beak wound she'd inflicted, but it would seal itself in a matter of seconds, and Zevi was used to such minor injuries by now.

He suffered worse from Vix than from Alisto.

"What do you want, Liss?" he asked her softly, tipping his hand over for the bird. He didn't sit up yet, but he rolled his head to the side so that he could watch her. Without so much as a cheep, Alisto hopped onto his palm, little talons hooked harmlessly under the meat of his thumb, and beaked the leading edge of one wing for a moment. A gesture of apology. At least, that's what Zevi liked to think - sometimes he swore Alisto ran his whole life for him and he just hadn't caught on yet. (The rest of the time, he knew she was just selfish).

Watching his precious kestrel, a sudden thought struck him. An unpleasant, supremely unwelcome thought. If he did bond a Wind Eagle like he wanted to, what would happen to Alisto? Would he able to keep her? What if she and his Eagle didn't get along? Zevi honestly wasn't sure if the Endal kept other birds. If they didn't, would that mean he'd have to give Alisto to somebody else? Even if he could ever bring himself to part from her, Zevi knew better than anyone the kind of bird she was. She'd never accept another Inarta as her own.

Worry bred worry and like clung to like. Fearing for his beloved bird should the presence of a much larger, more intelligent bird come into play naturally led to every other concern Zevi had never had. Would he just stop glassblowing, taking on so many hunting duties? Just because he'd bleed his own siblings to become an Endal didn't mean he didn't greatly enjoy his Avora task. (Ok, so maybe he wouldn't quite bleed them... Well, maybe his sister). Zevi didn't want to give up glassblowing.

And what about Vix? Would he still get to learn tricks of the trade from his Master? She wouldn't even be considered his Master, then, would she? He'd be an Endal, above her in caste.

His awe was tainted by sadness now, and when he chanced a look back up at the sky, the meteors seemed suddenly tragic. Here were stars - beautiful, powerful, majestic - falling inevitably to their deaths. If one perchance fell nearby, would Zevi be able to find it? He made a mental note to look; if anything deserved to be mourned in its death, it was a star.

[Enria]

Enria looked up at the stars again and meteors falling around them; it occurred to her then that it wasn’t as beautiful as it seemed, the stars that streaked across the sky were, in reality, dying. She turned her gaze to the floor, no longer wanting to look at death – even if it was beautiful. Her mind was on overdrive, playing different scenarios in her head; one where she became and Avora and the other where she travelled. But each scenario seemed to be like a golden highlight reel, it only showed the positives; and Enria knew there were bound to be negatives as well as positives.

Having barely absorbed her surroundings, Enria noticed she was near the Courtyard of the Sky. She had fond memories here, but now in the night it seemed bare; as if all her memories of here had simply faded away. She tentatively stepped into the place she had so often visited. It seemed like she was trespassing, like she was a stranger who didn’t belong here. Did she? She was always clumsy and bumping into people and she never thought before she spoke. Perhaps it would do her good to have a change of scenery; it might teach her a few things.

But she could always learn here. There was no real reason why she couldn’t. Besides, she had heard some horror stories about a few Inartans who had left Wind Reach to travel; they hadn’t travelled very far until they were brought back and rushed to the Infirmary. Enria never found out what happened to them. But she did know that by venturing out, they put themselves at risk to whatever creatures lurked out there. Did Enria really want to risk getting injured or, even worse, killed? Though there were travellers who made it to and from Wind Reach and were fine. If Enria was really concerned she could always rally around to see if there was anyone willing to go with her. But still she was tore over what to do.

As she looked around the courtyard, she noticed a young boy lying on the ground staring up at the sky; Enria couldn’t tell much from this light but she could make out that he had something with him. Wait, was that a bird? Enria thought to herself before giving her head a little shake, she had other things to worry about then to question what she saw. Instead, she decided to quietly move into the Stained Glass Gallery so as not to disturb him. Perhaps the quietness of the gallery could help her find solace over this problem she seemed to be having.

She slipped into long hallway and walked along the columns that carefully depicted the castes of Wind Reach; all the way from the Endals to even the Deks. She paused by the Avora columns and sat before it; she pulled out her book and pencil from her bag and began to sketch it. Hoping that drawing the columns would take her mind off her thoughts that raged inside her head.

[Zevi]

Quiet footsteps gently pulled Zevi from his ponderings. Alisto ignored whoever it was who had entered the otherwise deserted Courtyard, tucking her head under her right wing. Head already tilted to the side, it was no great task for Zevi to lift his gaze and seek the source of the sound.

She was older than him, certainly, and if forced to guess, Zevi would have said she was either of Chiet or Avora caste (given the pretty Brynda and Vinati she wore). They looked to be black, or purple, but then under the shimmering meteors her skin appeared almost scintillating shades of violet and red. For a moment, her face was turned towards him and then she slipped off through into the Stained Glass Gallery without a word.

Zevi looked after her a few seconds longer, contemplating going after her. But what use would he have for that? Besides which, she probably wouldn't welcome whatever meagre company he'd be able to provide. The Gallery was generally a place for quieter activities anyway - whether in solitude or not. Once she was gone, he turned his hazy eyes back onto Alisto, and smiled softly.

"You faker," he chirped at her. "I know you're not really asleep." The kestrel didn't respond, just remained with her beak tucked away, but Zevi chuckled at her. It was peaceful, lying alone under the night with his mischievous bird.

If only it didn't inspire the fear of loss.

Without warning, Alisto's talons dug deep into Zevi's hand, gouging painfully. Blood puddled in his palm, leaking from wounds far worse than Alisto had ever inflicted on anything not prey (well, except for that one time, but that didn't bear thinking about). Screeches tore from her beak, her wings flailing as Zevi instinctively flinched away from her. With a vicious flutter, the bird launched herself into the air, circling her injured master and crying harsh cries with a bitter vengeance.

Hissing, Zevi shot to his feet, trying to coax her down. "Alisto! Alisto!" he shouted at her, frustration welling up when he was ignored. The worries and fears and wonders were gone, erased utterly by his bird's peculiar behaviour. Even the plummeting stars vanished. All Zevi could think about was the pain in his hand, the terror of his avian best friend, the hot blood dripping down his fingers. "What is it?" he called, hoping the sound of his voice would orient the creature.

When that failed, he tried whistling for her, holding up his uninjured arm for her to land, but she continued circling, raptor cries piercing. The animal's fear was contagious, creeping into Zevi's chest like Deks crept around an angry Endal. But what could he do? If Alisto didn't calm, he'd have to manually catch her - an experience that was just generally painful and traumatic for all involved.

"Alisto," he reached for her, trying to avoid the sharp beak. And at that moment, the ground shook for a few precious seconds and light flared brilliantly, bathing the sky almost as if it was daytime.

Exhausted, Alisto flopped into Zevi's hands, huddling there. More than a little freaked out, Zevi looked around frantically, hoping that he could quickly find someone who knew what had just happened when thoughts clicked together in his head. Had... Had a star just fallen nearby?

[Enria]

As Enria started to sketch the second Avora column, she felt the ground beneath her shake. Her heart leapt into her mouth and her eyes widened in fear. What on earth was going on? But as suddenly as it had started, it had stopped. Enria abandoned her idea of drawing and stuffed her book and pencil back into her bag. She stood up, her body slightly shaking, and made her way out of gallery.

It wasn’t a big shake and probably lasted only a few seconds. But it was almost as if everything had been dialled down, like everything was happening in slow motion. It shook her up and left her questioning whether she had imagined it. If it had happened, would it happen again? Would her nest no longer be safe? But if it didn’t then why had she imagined it? Was she ill? Enria took a deep breath to try and steady her before opening the door and stepping back out into the courtyard.

As she slowly stumbled back out into the courtyard, she noticed the boy from earlier looking around frantically. The pair locked eyes on each other and Enria wondered for a second, if she looked just as frantic to him. Enria made her way to the boy, crossing the distance between the two in a matter of a few steps, to stand in front of him. As her golden eyes raked over the boy, she realised he was fairly young with long red hair and hazy green eyes with gold flecks in them; a bird was huddled in his grip. So it was a bird that I’d seen earlier. She couldn’t see in this light what type of bird it was but she could tell that it was obviously unnerved by the little shake they had; Poor thing must have been spooked by the shake.

Enria knew then that what she had felt in the gallery hadn’t been imagined at all; because if it was then the boy and his bird would still be where Enria had last seen them, before disappearing into the gallery. He also probably wouldn’t have been nursing that injury on his hand. Enria assumed, by the look of it, that it could have been inflicted by a bird, most likely the one he was holding, because of the shake; it must have shaken the bird more than Enria first realised.

“Are you and your bird okay?” Enria gestured to the bloodied hand of the boy and the bird, which Enria felt sure, must be shaking beneath her master’s hold. “Do you need any help for your hand?”

Enria knew how to clear his injury and how to dress it because of her day at the infirmary, a few days previously. But she didn’t press it any further than her offer. She didn’t want to wade it where she wasn’t needed or wanted. But if he needed her help, she would happily step in to help him.

It occurred to her then that the shake might have something to do with the stars flaring across the sky. Maybe they were connected. Enria’s brow furrowed as she began connecting the shake to the meteor shower. What if one of stars, that Enria had seen tearing across the sky, had fallen? If that were true, Enria wanted to track it down. It would be fascinated to see something like that up close. Something in her raced at the thought of discovering it. Would it be just as beautiful as when it was in sky? Or would it be scarred and ugly from its fall? Enria had so many questions which she felt sure would be answered if she found it.

“I bet a star fell.” She whispered, half to herself and half to the boy.

[Zevi]

"Are you and your bird ok? Do you need any help for your hand?" She had come back out, looking shaken by the brief quake, her liquid golden eyes wide. Zevi didn't - couldn't - look away as she approached and scanned him, offering her assistance. In his hands he could feel the rapid th-thrum th-thrum of Alisto's heart, laid over with her quick breathing. Well, he could only feel it against the one - his right hand was a throbbing puddle of blood and pain. The wounds weren't quite to the bone, but they would persist for quite a while. What a nuisance it would be during kiln work.

For a single moment longer he stared at her, not fully comprehending, and then stammered, "I- Uh- I-"

A little frown passed over her face, her gaze flickering up to the sky for a moment as she interrupted. "I bet a star fell," she whispered. It almost sounded like she wasn't talking to him, but Zevi heard the words clearly nonetheless.

Finally, the boy's tongue cooperated with him. "I, um, I think I'll be alright for now... I'm just worried about Alisto," he added, dropping his gaze from the stranger (although her wild red hair marked her as definitely Inartan) and to his raptor. The kestrel was still huddled down in his grip, trembling, her eyes closed tightly. Any injuries she might have had did not make themselves apparent to Zevi, so he was forced to assume she was unharmed. "I think she was scared by the... the star that came down..."

Carefully, he rolled the bird onto his left palm and removed his right; his blood was staining her feathers, and not only would it be worlds of difficult to get out later, but it obscured any potential wounds on the creature herself. Using left hand and right fingertips, he gently placed Alisto on his shoulder, waiting until he felt her talons clamp onto the skin there before he let her go.

Pain lanced up his wrist and he hissed, wincing. Ok, so keep the hand relaxed and don't pull on in the lacerations. Good to know.

"Do you think anyone else was hurt?" he asked suddenly, without looking back at the girl - who was, actually, fairly older than him. Maybe she should be called a woman. "We can't have been the only people to have felt that."

[Enria]

The boy waved away her offer to help; instead he seemed more focused on whether his bird was okay. He seemed to confirm Enria’s belief that the bird, not to mention themselves, had been spooked by the star that had fallen. Enria felt that urge in her to run off and find it, like the seeker in the game of hide and seek.

She watched as he carefully placed his bird onto his left hand, it was there she could see a few marks of blood, Enria at first wondered if it could be the bird’s blood but then she realised it must have been the boy’s blood; after all he was the one sporting the injury. The bird, who Enria learnt was called Alisto, seemed was just spooked and didn’t seem to be injured. She watched again as the boy gently placed the bird on his shoulder. The familiar wince of pain creeping up on his face showed Enria that he really wasn’t going to be as fine as he told her.

“I wish you’d let me help you.” Enria said, frowning at the boy.

But it seemed like the boy wasn’t paying attention because he replied abruptly, “Do you think anyone else was hurt? We can’t have been the only people to have felt that.”

“We can’t have been the only ones to have seen it either.” Enria replied. “But that can wait, your hand can’t. Please let me look at it.”

She tentatively took the boys hand and examined it closely. It seemed as if Enria was right, it looked as if the marks were made by the birds talons. Enria knew she’d need to bathe the wound, clear it as best she could, to prevent infection and then dress it in clean cloth. The question was where could she go to get both the water and the clean cloth?

“We need to wash out your wound and dress it. It needs to be treated.” She informed the boy; before giving him a small smile. “Apart from your hand are you feeling okay?”

She looked at the bird, which still looked scared, but was satisfied after a moment’s glance the bird seemed fine. Though Enria wondered if she was; she had the opportunity for adventure, on her very own doorstep but instead she had almost shunned it. But she couldn’t just leave this boy on his own, especially since he was injured. That would go against what Enria wanted more than she wanted to fly the nest, and that was to help others. If she just left him, she’d be going against part of who she is. But another part of her wanted that sense of adventure, wanted to find that star. She couldn’t imagine how it would feel if she did find it. Maybe, after she could coax the boy into letting her treat his hand, she could slope off and try to find it – if someone didn’t beat her to it.

[Zevi]

“We can’t have been the only ones to have seen it either. But that can wait, your hand can’t. Please let me look at it.” She took his hand, and Zevi had to hold himself utterly still to hide his surprise. It wasn't exactly unusual for many Inartans of different castes and ages to interact freely - by the sky, Zevi knew for a fact that the Dek who had carried some of his supplies yesterday was good friends with an Endal - but Zevi tried to keep to himself most of the time. He hadn't engaged in any real play since becoming an Avora apprentice, so the person he spent the most time with was Vix, his master.

And she wasn't exactly... normal.

Eyes glowing in the light of the meteor shower, Zevi watched the woman as she inspected the wound, wincing slightly at the contact. After a few moments, she announced her verdict. “We need to wash out your wound and dress it. It needs to be treated.” That was about what Zevi had expected - he didn't honestly know how to do it himself, having skipped a lot of Bendi due to his natural prowess in glassblowing - but he'd gone to the infirmary enough. He couldn't say he was looking forward to it, but then... well, it could always be worse. Besides, she was right.

Quite suddenly, she smiled at him. “Apart from your hand are you feeling okay?” she asked him softly, releasing him.

"Yeah," he replied, his voice low. "I've had worse working on glass." After a moment of thought, he realised a problem. "The infirmary isn't very close," he noted, glancing down at his blood-ridden hand - wow, it looked much worse than it felt. No wonder she was worried. "I guess we'll just have to walk."

And then, maybe then, he could go and find that star. Since he was sure Alisto was alright - though perhaps in a state of shock - he could afford to keep that mental promise to himself. A star had fallen nearby, and now he had to go and find it. Mourn it.