Birds of a Feather (Viridae)

[Sosicly Magnolia]

8th of Autumn, 513AV

The Sickle and Arrow was not the Hunters Gather but it always had a few hunters milling about. This day was no different, Valdyor was in conversation with a small group of young looking hunters, a few sat at the table looking like they were checking their gear, and the half-blood was there as well fiddling with her bow.

Sosicly stared at the little crowd, and hoped it was still early enough for her to be able to go topside. Taking a moment to pull out her book she stepped forward, not surprised when the hunter shook her head. "Taking you would be...risky. But I can go for you and bring you some."

Sosicly shook her head, and the hunter smiled apologetically when a nail tapped her shoulder lightly. It was the Dra.

"I can take you." The silent girl hesitated, but then slowly shook her head, parodying the previous encounter. She would be going nowhere with a Dra, hunter or no. Said half-breed looked put out for a moment before shrugging and gesturing to a hunter with shoulder length silvery hair. "Try asking, Viridae. I think he has had company before."

Awkwardly Sosicly thanked the young woman, then approached the aforementioned hunter. She took a seat in front of him and slid her book in his direction, watching him patiently. If he said no there were others but someone was going to take her.

You will take me hunting for bird feathers. Compensation can be provided.

[Viridae Kabre]

Viridae had spent most of his morning fiddling with his bow, waiting for the day to breeze by. Although it was now Autumn, the time of year game was most boudful, he found himself possesing less will to get out and work. Each day became shorter and shorter, until eventually, all he did was check and re set his snares. Luckily, with the Masquerade approaching, Raptor feathers were in demand, otherwise he wouldn't be able to sustain himself. Every night he sold the birds at The Hunter's Gather, taking his payment in the form of fresh Venise stew. If things continued this way, he would surely end up broke.

The majority of the day was spent in the Sickle and Arrow, listening quietly to the storys of his peers, wishing he had something to distract him from the empty feeling in both his heart and his stomache. It didn't look as though anyone had noticed, but surely they would see that he was no longer participating in group hunts, withdrawing from the one social activity he frequently undertakes, and didn't have his nearly comical little card that read "Hunting guide" perched before him at his small table. He drew his hood, silver locks flowing from beneath it, and closed his amythist eyes, sliding his feet across the buckskin rug and slipping into a light sleep.

Viridae woke suddenly to the sound of something sliding across his table, but did not rustle, jump, or flinch. He simply opened his eyes and peered down at the paper through long black eyelashes. You will take me hunting for bird feathers. Compensation can be provided.

He raised a brow and looked up into the girl's scarlett eyes, tilting his head, before looking back to the paper, the corner of his mouth curling into a slight awkward smile. With a long clawed finger, he traced the words "You" and "will" and ripped them out, switching them around and replacing them before again using his finger to scratch a small squiggle above the first period. the paper now read, Will you take me hunting for bird feathers? compensation can be provided.

"Thats better," he said, leaning back and streching his long arms above his head with a yawn.

[Sosicly Magnolia]

Sosicly's hand twitched when Viridae ripped her paper, tempted to snatched the book back. But when he only moved the paper she eyed it, then smirked slightly. She decided she liked him. Even if he did correct her. Sliding the book back she pulled out her quill and ink, and set herself up for a short negotiation. Will you, Krova? I need at least five birds. I will pay you for each but I will go with you. Staring at him for a moment longer, she looked to his bow and made a face, Do you only shoot them? I might wish to see one before we bring it back. She wrote as if she was certain of his consent, and she was. once more she slid the book across, and stared hard at the young man. He didn't look entirely familiar but she supposed most hunters were topside most of the time. Still she figured she might connect the name to a web but she could not. Then Sosicly halted her thoughts remembering she forgot to add one more thing and tapped out the word bird and stretched her arms wide to indicate she wanted big birds. Next she did the same and made a small space between her hands to indicate tiny birds as well. Then she looked around the room until she seen something in a bright yellow, and gold and pointed at it then at the bird once more. When she finished she gave him a wide fang-filled smile, and waited, her foot beginning to bounce in nervousness. She had never left Kalinor after the fiasco that was Alvadas, and she wasn't sure she could make such a long trip. Maybe she could be carted out?

[Viridae Kabre]

He scanned over the text silently and raised his brow again. At first, he had thought the girl shy, but obviously, this was her primary means of communication. That made him smile as he assed her, tilting his head again to the left and smiling politely.

Her slight frame accented the dark color of her hair, scarlet eyes reminding him of the blood of slain game. She seemed confident, but it felt less like a personality trait, and more like a learned ability. She had to make herself strong, surely, and her silence only added to her unique personality.

"The smaller birds I shoot. The ones you usually see in the trees, and on the ground. The larger ones that are only seen in the sky can only be trapped. Luckily for you, Sibea, I already have traps set, and we can check them if you'd like. Most of the larger birds are gold and brown, or at least have that coloring about them somewhere."

He looked to the paper then back to the girl, tilting his head, then tapping the parchment. "This is good. Quiet is key whilst hunting. Most of our kind don't travel to the surface often. speak of which, when did you want to leave? I know of various exits, most aren't far from here, and I am fully prepared if you are."

With that he sat up a bit straighter and ran over the locations of his snares in his head. The raptor snares hadn't been checked at all today, but were a little bit of a climb up a hillock for the larger raptors. Smaller raptors were in the valley below the hill, and birds a short hike away near a narrow brooke. In all, this trip should only take about four hours to complete, and he had plenty of provisions for them both. He set his pack on the floor in preperation to stand.

[Sosicly Magnolia]

Sosicly pulled back her book, dipped her quill and began to write again. Gold or yellow are what I would prefer but lighter colored feather might work if I could dye them. She could always ask the dyers from the silk to see if they knew how to dye feathers. Or maybe Viridae knew how and could tell her. She paused while he spoke again, writing the answers to his questions and her own before she would give him back the book. It makes sense, there is not much up there that we do not already have down here. Do I need to bring anything extra? I have used a lash before. Sosicly added, thinking of creatures that could be up there. She wondered if she should mention that she only used the lash once. And she only spun it in a circle. Now is an appropriate time to leave. Which way is the quickest? Again she wondered if she should tell him the extra bit of information, like how she would not be able to walk for a long time or very far pr very quick. But then the young man got a faraway look in his odd colored eyes and she decided to keep it to herself. Something this simple even she could do. It was then that Sosicly decided she quite liked Viridae. Compliments could get you everywhere it seemed, and he was doing as she asked which was good enough for her. Finally ready she handed him the book once more then stood, waiting for him let her knpw what they would do next.

[Viridae Kabre]

Viridae looked her up and down, before saying a simple, "we should be fine," before rising to his feet and crossing the table.

"By the way, you never told me your name. I'm Viridae," He said easily pausing as he passed her and bowing his head slightly.

"Come," he said with a wink, pacing towards the exit rope.
After climbing the rope, the pair of them moved through Kalinor in relitive silence, with Viridae simply enjoying the fact that he was not alone. Usually, once he overcomes his initial social anxiety, interacting with a person is simple, and only done when necessary, but things with Soscily felt diffrent. The slight gestures, casual smiles, and raises of eyebrows were plenty. Viridae did not once feel nervous in her presence, in fact, he felt like himself for the first time in months.

After a while, they came to a rope that slithered up a thick cave sickle dangling from the city's rocky moch-skyline. Around the stalagtite wound a faint narrow path that led into a deep and dark hole in the city's upper canvas.

"This one leads to the surface, close to the hills," He said quietly. This section of Kalinor was nearly dead silent, with the exception of the wind's faint whistle from the tunnel above. He assesed her slight fram again, tilting his head before offering his hand.

"I can help you climb if you'd like," he said with a smile, fang tips poking at his bottom lips.

[Sosicly Magnolia]

Sosicly thought about writing that she already knew that but decided against it, instead flipping to a simple pre-written introduction and flashing it his way. I am Sosicly. Getting up she quickly closed her vial then tossed all three items into her knapsack, and followed Viridae out. More evaluation of the Sym told her he knew what he was doing though she thought they might have to slow down their pace a tad. When they finally came to the surface tunnel Sosicly took a moment to catch her breath. She looked up at the tunnel warily, wondering if she still wanted to go. Coking her head she returned Viridae’s smile and made a so-so gesture, trying to let him know she might. Then she adjusted her knapsack, and made an after you gesture then followed the young man up. The rocks tunnel was fairly craggy, which allowed for better grip but it was a long climb. About ten chimes in Sosicly was stumbling, and latching onto Viridae for support to help her the rest of the way. It took longer than she thought to reach the edge of the city. And exiting felt strange, and uncomfortable or maybe it was just her mild chest pains. Sosicly immediately sat down, and held up a finger to her companion. While she caught her breath she looked around. It was bright, cold, and smelled like damp earth. She squinted, and was surprised by the noise that seemed to permeate the air along with the lack of other people. It looked different than her memory of her last visit topside, the comparisons overlapping to form an odd picture in her minds eye. Taking off her knapsack she pulled out her waterskin, offering it to Viridae silently. Then she pulled out her notebook and an inkstick. What do we do first?

[Viridae Kabre]

Viridae did not mind helping the Sosicly up the narrow path, but was thankfull they were hunting birds and not larger game. He had never had to run from a bird before, and was sure she couldn't manage a chase from a large predetor in the unforgiving, but that didn't matter, he was just glad to have the company.

As they exited the city, Viridae sucked in a large breath of the moist cool air of early Autumn. The trees surrounding the tunnel exit looked like they had been set ablaze with sparks of red orange and gold leaves jutting from their branches. Before them was a rocky outcropping surrounded by a sparce forest, a lightly beaten path heading towards the base of a short mountain with a flat platue like peak. The path was so slightly uphill that it appeared flat.

He looked to Sosicly and nodded in understanding, before wondering if she was experiencing the same sense of freedom he was. The surrounding woods sang a song of wind and chirps, and he stood before her, taking the water sack and drinking a little before handing it back to her and tilting his head to read from the book.

"We hike north over the smaller mountain to check the small bird snares for sparrow hawk and Black Kite, then over the seccond peak to check the Vulture and eagle snares. In the valley we may come across a few small birds that catch your eye, and the hike to the seccond peek follows a brooke habbited by ducks. Sound good?"

He offered to help her up before they set off to the north, the trees growing farther apart and the temperature dropping the further they ventured up the mountainside. By time they where at the peek, Viridae could see slight whisps of breath raising from Sosicly's lips. They paused for a moment at the top and he offered her a jar of preserved peaches retrieved from his pack.

"Not another like it," He said gesturing to the fire colored valley below. Clear sky contrasted with the tree tops of the mountain peek that lay across the valley, and large granite boulders stood defiently at odd angles close to the tip top. "So you know what I do, but I don't know a single thing about you," he said over his shoulder, without turning to look at her. Instead he kept his eyes fixated on the skyline, enjoying the quite that had settled over his mind.

[Sosicly Magnolia]

Sosicly watched Viridae watching the world around them. He look much more comfortable than she felt, as if he could easily stay out there. She wondered if that's what their ancestors felt but she only felt the fear of being suffocated by too much space. All the same it was pretty, she supposed, in small doses. For now all she was enjoying was her much needed break. Her chest felt as if it rattled with liquid, and her throat hurt from the strain of pulling in the thin cold air. Coughing she pulled her jacket tighter around her and shivered. At Viridae's question she gave a roll of her shoulders and smiled. It was easy to pick up things about other people, they talked frequently enough. No one ever really asked her about herself, they were too busy pitying her. Then she tried to catch his eye while holding her jacket and mimed sewing through it. Next she picked up a small, clear pebble and tapped it with a nail gently before holding it up to her jacket. Sewing and jewel crafting. After another moment of hesitation she took one of the preserved peaches with a smile, sucking on it slowly to try and wet her mouth. Wondering how much further Sosicly took Viridae's arm and tugged him along gently, keeping a firm grip to help her up. With her free hand she made a wide arc and cocked her head, asking where the snares were.

[Viridae Kabre]

He frowned as She coughed, a feeling of guilt washing over him. He had been walking too fast, and most were not accustomed to the thin air of the mountains. He shook the feeling away quickly. She was tough, this much was apernt. Strong personalitys are not a possesion of weak willed folk.

He hardly had time to react to her gesture of...Sewing? Embodery? Before being pulled down the narrow path leading into the valley.

"They run parallel to a creek not to far off in that direction," He said lightly, the cornor of his mouth lifting into a smile. Definately determined. He jogged a few paces so as to be directly beside Sosicly, and pulled his elbow in to pull her a little closer. "Are you cold?" He said politely, beggining to pull his scarf off with his free hand.

The hike down did not take long, and before they knew it, Viridae was steering them both onto a thin side path that snaked around skinney birch trees. Lark and robbin chirped simple sonngs to each other and flitted about. He paused at the first tree, peering at it for a long moment before shaking his head and nodding toward a thin black silk rope on the ground, circling a pile of grain. These snares were meant to catch wild turkey, but sometimes a partridge would wander in. The first was empty. He guestured for Sosicly to wait a moment as he tightened the rope, making the loop smaller, then took her arm again and hiked on to the seccond tree.

This was a bit more of a turnout than the first. A fat Partridge hung from the branch by its neck, swaying slightly in the breeze, brown and gold feathers shining prominantly in the morning sun. Viridae loosened the rope around its neck and pulled the branch back down to create tension, before placing three small stones in a pyramid around the rope. The snare was reset. He turned and held the bird up triumphantly by the neck, stroking the long pale yellow wing feathers. "These aren't the best, but its a start, correct?"

Tibetan Partridge :