Shinnies! [I'dou/Laraph]

[Stranger]

It was the glint that caught his eye first; a soft sheen reflecting from the ground with a brightness that outshone the brilliant snow around it. Ourobeph paused in mid--stride, one foot raised, and cocked his head around to peer at it. Nothing much to be seen - he was too far off, of course, and no way could he ask his Bonded either since H'tio was even further behind him. Silly fellow was always lagging so far behind, grumbling about the cold and the wind and why he had to accompany his hatchling out here. Well, let him mutter and sulk and cringe in his furs - Ouro was going to have fun! And one day, he was sure, the silly boy would enjoy getting time away from that stuffy room and all those books too.

Sunlight curved from behind a cloud - the shiny thing glinted again. Thoroughly curious now the blue chick scampered through the knee-high mound of snow, stubby wings flopping in his jerking motions through the soft, fresh-fallen masses. That odd stray glint had come from...here! Slipping to a shuddering halt, he flicked his muzzle down at it, peering with wide mint-green eyes at the stringy silver thing half-covered with snow. It was that much shinier, close up; and it looked so pretty. Ourobeph could not help reaching to pull it out for a clearer view.

Not (so) far behind, H'tio staggered through the wake that his hatchling had made in the snow, grateful for the thickness of the leather boots and the heavy woolen leggings he wore. Cold had never sat well with him, not since he was young and had had week-long fevers from being stranded on a broken bridge in Chydyn one freezing winter, and it was horribly cold this far north. The incessant wind wasn't helping - it brushed his cheeks with icy fingers, pulled strand of stinging dark hair into his eyes. He stopped, shook his head irritably, looked around for Ourobeph.

He was up ahead, back to H'tio and gazing at something in the snow. Seeing him out here, with the watery sun gleaming through the thin clouds above, the blue winglet could not help but marvel again at how beautiful he was. That slate blue body and green-tinged wings would have made an impression any day, but here they blended with uncanny splendor into the white snow, creating an image of elegant poise. Particularly so as he was standing so tersely, and watchful...

...which meant, very likely, that he had found something he would like to bring back to the bunk again. H'tio sighed: the bunk was already becoming a quagmire as it was, filling with shell-bits, rocks and the odd trinket alongside his own stacks of books. There was even a pretty red shawl - Ourobeph had returned with it from one of his earlier solo escapades in the snow, and H'tio hadn't dared to ask whose it was. He had tried (once again) to impress on the miffed hatchling that taking things back randomly was a bad idea, but knowing it was probably futile he now made it a point to always accompany Ourobeph when he went roaming - if only to make sure his chick did not inadvertently made off with something truly valuable.

Whatcha' found, Ourry? he crunched gingerly through the ice, mindspeech slipping naturally as thought between them, Can I see?

Yesyes, of course, Ourobeph's mindvoice was sizzling with excitement, Look H'tio, it's beautiful! Silvery beautiful!

H'tio stared down at the watch clustered in the spheres of pale ice, and felt his heart sink as his eyes widened. He wasn't sure what it was - a lady's hand bracelet, perhaps - but it was a lovely piece; and without doubt valuable too. Ourobeph had really done it this time - he was going to have to find a way to get it off him, or risk facing a confrontation from its previous owner. He frowned. Whoever it was was probably quite careless as well - how could anyone leave something like this out here? The hatchling chirruped cheerily, lifting the bracelet-thing very gently in his jaws. H'tio reached for it.

Here, he said, I'll carry it for you.

Ourobeph tossed his head, stumbling back in the heavy snow, No, I wanna carry it.

But you might spoil it - remember what happened to that cake?

I'll be nice, it won't break, and it's harder too than the cake, he started to scramble off; H'tio caught him by one wing, Slowly, please, or you'll drop. Why not let me carry it?

Nono H'tio, I want to - it's so pretty!

He was off again before H'tio could stop him, trotting carefully to avoid jostling his prize too much. With a sigh the blue winglet broke into a jog to keep up, trying not to slip on the icy snow.

[winged]

She’d been out here for nearly an hour, plowing with frightening resolve through drifts of powdery snow, glittering flakes that caught the bracing wind and were more often than not tossed back to dust the front of I’dou’s dingy overcoat and painfully sculpted face. It was evident from examination that the young woman was desperate; her pale eyes constantly scoured the white, blankness of the Canyon Bed, training with particular fervor on sprigs of hardy grass or polished stone that interrupted the continuity of the snowy landscape. She was not immune to the cold – her face was colored bright red, and her features looked particularly pinched as the occasional gust dug its icy talons deeper into her shallow shell of warmth.

Despite this the gray rider steamed ahead, her steps hurried and anxious when not interrupted with a hopeful side-step, a long stare into a small swath of colorless oblivion, and a dismayed push forward. Her slender arms pumped furiously as I’dou’s frustrations built – it HAD to be here, somewhere! Her upset sat openly on her face, as she guilt tripped herself. Stupid, stupid! She shouldn’t have taken it out of the damn box, it didn’t even work anyways! Her intense gaze, boring ahead, grew hazy with a film of tears she stubbornly refused to shed. She needed to find it…

Laraph, tucked into her sheltered alcove back within the Eyrie walls, listened thoughtfully to her rider’s lament, interjecting only once the woman’s thoughts leaned heavily towards self-loathing. It was an accident, you’ll find it. The gentle words were underscored with ire, however. She’d been living these past few weeks with a person who wore the face of her rider, but shared little else in common with the person she’d plopped down in front of on the sands. The gray was doing her best to hold it together, and if moments like these wore on her nerves, then it was only a testament to her genteel nature that she survived the encounter without devolving into a cuckolding hen. Privately, she held a desperate hope that this wouldn’t last a moment longer than absolutely necessary.

Unaware of her simourv’s sensitized discontent, I’dou motored on. Absorbed in her miseries, the rider had nearly passed H’tio and his scavenging simourv before a glint of silver caught the corner of her eye, and she stalled mid-pace, head slowly swiveling to follow the glimmer of polished metal. Her eyes bugged as the timepiece registered familiarity, her jaw clenched painfully tight as one hand whipped out reflexively to snatch the thing from the hatchling’s beak. “That’s my WATCH!” The words grated threateningly against one another, boding ill for the unintentional thief. The blue chick and his rider had garnered the wrath of the gray rider, make no mistake.