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Feathers (ScarlettFire & Aley)



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Mon Mar 03, 2014 5:36 am
ScarlettFire says...



@Aley Feathers Discussion Area

Setting: Bennett Springs, a small city located in the middle of a forest. It is close to a lake and a small mountain range, which are part of Bennett Springs National Park. There are several schools, a sports ground, a local pool and a local shopping centre/mall. Population of approx. 2,167. There are rumours of odd occurances in the area.

General Plot: One day while hiking, a young man stumbles across another person in the forest. At first, the man seems normal but soon it's apparent that he's not, and that neither of them are. One has wings and the other is something decidedly not exactly completely human. When something threatens the city and those they care about, they discover they might not be so different after all.

(Basically, watch what happens when Scar's character discovers he's not alone in his abnormality, and Aley's character has to put up with teaching someone older than him about his true heritage.)
"With friends like you, who needs a medical license?" - Paimon, Aether's Heart


“It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission.” - Grace Hopper.





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Mon Mar 03, 2014 5:59 am
ScarlettFire says...



Micah - Forest, several miles outside Bennett Springs:

The forest was awash is green-tinged light. Micah could barely see the sky through the thick foliage above him. He was just glad to be out of the city a bit even if it was only for the day. His wings were begining to itch beneath the thick shirt he wore, despite the fact that it was the middle of summer and he was practically melting.

"I hate summer," Micah muttered, tugging on his shirt. He didn't help that the leather straps holding his wings in place was begining to rub and probably blister. Just a little further and he'd find one of the smaller lakes. "So can't want for winter. Maybe then I can sneak around shirtless while everyone is inside and hiding away from the snow."

He paused for a moment to rub at his shoulder where the leather strap rested. It was very tempting to simply take off the shirt and remove the leather that bound his wings. As unpleasant as it was, though, Micah knew he couldn't risk being seen. Then again, who would be out in the forest in the middle of the day during a summer heat wave? Probably only the crazy ones. Guess that made him crazy.

Micah shook his head and started off again. He wasn't far from the lake now, so maybe he should take off the shirt. He was about to stop and struggle with his top when a low noise caught his attention. He jerked around to his right but saw nothing. The forest stretched on for a while with no sign of any kind of person or animal. He had to be imagining things. He did not just hear someone groan. He didn't.

But then he heard it again, and this time it sounded like someone swearing. Micah frown and turned around. Again, he saw nothing. He spent a good, long minute just waiting for it to come again, but when he heard nothing, he just shook his head. He was definitely alone today, that was for sure. And he really needed to stretch his wings. They were still cramped from being strapped tight that morning. He pulled his shirt off over his head and was about to loosen the leather when he heard the swearing again. This time it clearly came from the direction of the lake he was head for. He turned towards it and began to creep forwards, shirt abandoned on the ground behind him.
"With friends like you, who needs a medical license?" - Paimon, Aether's Heart


“It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission.” - Grace Hopper.





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Mon Mar 03, 2014 6:33 am
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Aley says...



Amadi | Taner - Bennett Forest:

The heat practically baked the crackly plants around the still form at the edge of the little pond. The young male knelt in the drying mud focusing on his hands as if they were shaking in front of his eyes. His smooth back was hunched with a sun burn crawling around the edges of his tank top. He wasn't one to care about farmer's tans. The brown haired youth hardly bothered to look around as the slight wind fluffed the top of the lake. Birds twittered in the trees telling him everything was fine still.

Closing his brown eyes, the average looking boy took a long slow breath. The fresh air filled his lungs, rich with oxygen. He could smell the mildew of the pond, and the mud he'd turned up which stained his jeans and shoes. He could smell the grass that his heavy feet had over-turned as well, but barely. That was a stretch and so far under what he was used to, it was hard to stop there. He knew he should be able to smell the trees. He should smell the last animal who decided to take a dump near the lake too, marking it as their territory. There had to be some wild cats out here. He had smelled them before but now they seemed completely invisible.

He swore as his shoulders sagged again. The exhale was full of regret and denial. He rubbed his head with his muddy hand completely ignorant of the brown smear now across his head. He scratched his slightly long hair putting it behind his ear. Mud caked it in place. Amadi dug his hand into the soil again, feeling the cool chill crawl up his hands once his fingers broke the surface. Warmed by the sun, he closed his eyes, his palms next to his knees on the ground. "How am I supposed to do this if I can barely conjure a flame?" he asked himself quietly.

Amadi leaned forward looking at his reflection in the water. Just some human boy looked back at him. He was average, which was good, but the burns on his fingers and the mud he couldn't feel on his face told him all he needed to know. He needed more time.





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Mon Mar 03, 2014 7:07 am
ScarlettFire says...



Micah - Forest:

The lake appeared quicker than he'd thought, and kneeling in the mud on the edge was a figure. It seemed to be a boy, though something was telling Micah he should probably turn back. He crouched by a tree and fingered one of the leather straps, frowning at the scene before him. The birds were twittering, though the tune had changed slightly at his approach.

The boy wore jeans and a tank top. He couldn't tell if he wore shoes because all he saw was the mud caking the kid's feet. Micah shifted slightly, rubbing at his shoulder again. He really needed to take the leather straps off soon. They were definitely beginning to make his skin blister.

He should probably just leave. The kid obviously wasn't doing any harm. He was kind of just sitting there on the edge of the lake and staring at his reflection. Micah edged backwards a little. Something cracked under his left foot. He winced and glanced down. He'd stepped on a twig. The noise had the boy scrambling to his feet. Micah froze, hoping the kid didn't see him half-hiding behind the tree.
"With friends like you, who needs a medical license?" - Paimon, Aether's Heart


“It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission.” - Grace Hopper.





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Mon Mar 03, 2014 7:21 am
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Aley says...



Amadi | Taner - Bennett Forest:

Amadi was completely unaware of being watched until he heard the twig snap. The birds fluttered away as Amadi stumbled to his feet turning around. He tossed out an arm to stabilize himself. His lanky form left his ankles weaker than he was used to and he almost put too much effort into standing. Luckily his feet were not completely stuck as he popped onto them.

If the birds were gone then whomever it was had spooked, right? That had to be it. They hadn't cared about the noise beforehand which meant either now it was a threat, or it was trying to do something sneaky.

Amadi put a hand on his left hip. He couldn't see into the darkness of the woods from where he stood in the light. The trees and bushes were too thick for him to see into the shade. He squinted trying to see better, hiking up his shirt. He exposed the hilt of a short knife. The handle was a bright rubbery red-orange with a little button flopping off of it to keep it in the makeshift sheath. He popped the button slowly approaching the woods.

Sweat spiked down his back as he shivered, his senses going wild as he tried to identify what he was up against with his normal flexibility. He couldn't see. Blinking and squinting he threw a quick glance around. He could kind of make out a shadow that was thicker than the rest.

"Who's there?" He called out, not sure if he was making a complete fool of himself or not. If he was going to be human though, he should act like it. "Anyone there!" He yelled louder. He heard some more birds squawk and flap away from his shouting. He paused in his approach to the woods to listen for some response. He couldn't feel anything outside of himself and it was frustrating. All he could do now was wait and pray he saw it before it landed on him.





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Mon Mar 03, 2014 7:35 am
ScarlettFire says...



Micah - Forest:

Micah tensed as more birds scattered. The kid was shouting. He cringed and scrambled for the leather digging in him. The click of the buckle was loud in the sudden silence. He could hear the kid's breathing. Strangely, it wasn't all that hard or uneven. Just oddly calm. Micah struggled with the straps for a moment before it came loose. His wings snapped open with a whoosh. The kid's head turned towards him.

He shoved his braid of blonde hair out of face and scrambled onto his feet. The kid had brown eyes, and they were narrowed in his general direction. Micah knew he wouldn't see his pitch black wings, but maybe he'd see the silver-grey markings on them. God, he hoped not. That would be likely, though, for his wings to give him away. They almost always did.

"Hello? Anyone?" The boy raised his voice again, and that was when Micah saw the handle he held. The kid had a bloody knife. Micah stumbled backwards, nearly triping over something in the process. It just had him making even more noise, this time a louder crack and then a thump as he tripped over something and landed on his arse. "Who's there, damnit!"

Micah let out a startled yelp as one of his wings hit something else. He wasn't sure if it was merely bruised or not yet, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to risk moving it. He cringed, chancing a glance towards the kid with the knife. All he could do was sit there and wait.
"With friends like you, who needs a medical license?" - Paimon, Aether's Heart


“It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission.” - Grace Hopper.





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Wed Mar 05, 2014 4:51 am
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Aley says...



Amadi | Taner - Bennett Forest:

Amadi listened intently only to hear some twigs snapping and something crash. He took a few more steps towards the forest edge. The area was thick with trees and he could make out some of a form which blocked the trees farther back. He didn't know what was there, but if he could scare it off, he was going to do his best to be scary. "Who's there, damnit!" he yelled loudly hoping that if he'd scared off one creature, he could scare off the others.

Taking a deep breath, he focused on the woods edge, and crept closer. He edged around the area, not wanting to step on a tiger if he headed directly towards the spot he'd heard the noise. Hopefully a little bit of circling could get him away from dying again here. He was just starting to get used to this human body. He didn't need another twenty some odd years to adjust to another one.

He broke the cover of the forest and traipsed loudly closer to where he had heard the noise. "Hey!" He called out when he spotted a kid on the ground. He frowned, looking at the black cloak that seemed to have a few silvery gray designs on it. "Hey why didn't you answer me?" He asked as he came a little closer. He stayed about three trees away from the guy on the ground, not sure what was going on with him. He didn't want to disrupt a mentally challenged person, and this guy was laying on the ground on his back, with this weird looking thing behind him.

If Amadi had been honest, he would have thought they were wings, full fledged wings. He had seen some like them before, but not here. What would a bird be doing here? He didn't let go of the knife, but rubbed his palm around the end of the hilt as it sat in his sheath. He didn't want to frighten the guy and he didn't want to let go of his advantage if this lunatic really did jump him.





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Wed Mar 05, 2014 5:47 am
ScarlettFire says...



Micah - Forest:

Cringing, Micah tried to twist around so he could see behind him. The kid was obviously there, somewhere behind him. He was also keeping his distance. Micah didn't blame him. He hissed when the movement jostled his wing. Correction, it might be more than just bruised. He didn't want to find out, because the kid was talking.

"Hey why didn't you answer me?"

Micah froze as the kid moved just a little closer, but still several feet away. He ground his teeth together and pushed himself upright with some difficulty. His wing protested, but he ignored it as best as he could. "You have a knife," he got out, keeping his voice down. He snapped his right wing in tight against his back and turned his head to examine the other one. It didn't look right to him. Yeah, he'd probably broken it or something. "I didn't want to disturb you..."
"With friends like you, who needs a medical license?" - Paimon, Aether's Heart


“It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission.” - Grace Hopper.





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Wed Mar 05, 2014 6:04 am
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Aley says...



Amadi | Taner - Forest:

Amadi stiffened and stepped back as the guy on the ground moved. He felt his stiff slight muscles protest as he wiped off his hand on his pants, the other still on the knife's hilt.

The other male was groaning and trying to push himself up at first. He stepped a little farther to the side. Amadi hadn't realized how far he'd circled around, but he'd put the guy between himself and the lake, not a good idea for all purposes, but alright for most of them. He stood down wind now, so he got a good whiff of nothing. Stupid human nose. The stranger managed to put his hand on the ground and push himself up some, even around the cloak that seemed to be tied to him around the chest under the arms somehow. He couldn't see a strap or neck tie from his angle, and as he came around, he didn't see anything across his chest.

The brown human eyes scraped over the limp dark forms behind this stranger. Seeing him lean up, Amadi's suspicions were solidified. "Holy crap, those are wings," Amadi gaped fakely. He hoped this guy didn't reveal his secret to too many people, because somehow he couldn't bring himself to be surprised. His voice came out dry. In all his years, he'd never picked up acting. He frowned, this guy was in too much pain to hear him.

"You have a knife," the man gasped. He was breathing heavily and Amadi could see why. His wing was bent in an odd direction from where it had smacked into the ground. That, and the weight of this man's torso undoubtedly snapped the bone. It wouldn't be a quick fix. Amadi figured it would take a while for the bone to knit just because it was hollow, and even after it did, it would be hurting for a while. Having to hide the wing would be very difficult.

The right wing came in against his body, cupping against his back and folding some to the land. "They really are wings," Amadi whispered crouching down at that point. He was more speaking to himself than the stranger. He wanted to get a better view of the break. He rested his forearms on his knees as he crouched like a frog and peered at the man. The guy turned to him some, looking at his wing. This stranger's perseverance and alertness in the presence of all of that pain astounded Amadi.

"I didn't want to disturb you..."

Amadi laughed. He couldn't help himself. He put together what the guy had said and shook his head. "It's a huntin' knife fella." He shot the guy a grin. This wasn't a threat to him, this was just some poor fool who had horrible luck and couldn't stay on his feet. He probably wasn't much older than Amadi. "Don't tell me you came out here unarmed," he teased shaking his head. "You're a winged man." Amadi stressed.





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Wed Mar 05, 2014 6:28 am
ScarlettFire says...



Micah - Forest:

Micah tensed. Did the kid just say what he'd thought he said? Yeah, he did. Damnit. He scrambled onto his feet despite the pain, stumbling around and into a tree, jostling his wing. He winced. "Don't say that so freaking loud!" he hissed, clutching the tree at his back, even as his wing protested. "I'm not that, not anything like that!"

The kid snorted. He was crouched on the ground, staring up at him. "Don't say what so loudly? Winged man?" he said, rising out of his crouch. Micah watched as the kid looked about before the kid's eyes came back to him. They were brown. "Who would hear it from here?"

"Shut up, damnit!" Micah snapped, eyes darting about. It was pointless, though. There wasn't anyone else around. It was just him and the kid. Besides, they were in the middle of the freaking forest. God, he was getting paranoid. He dragged a hand down through his hair and over his face, covering one blue-grey eye. "God, this is just so messed up," he muttered, closing his eyes and tilting his head back against the tree. "Look, I'm just gonna go now, okay?"

"No."

Micah froze. "Excuse me?" he asked without moving or opening his eyes.

"You would cause a massive panic if you walked out of here like that." The kid sounded a little amused.

He slitted his eyes at the kid. "Don't you think I know that?" Micah snapped, shifting against the tree and wincing again. He really needed to do something about his wing. "Besides, I checked before I came in here. My car was the only one in the parking lot." He squinted at the boy, taking in the kid's muddy appearence and sun-burned skin. "How'd you get out here?"
"With friends like you, who needs a medical license?" - Paimon, Aether's Heart


“It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission.” - Grace Hopper.





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Wed Mar 05, 2014 7:01 am
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Aley says...



Amadi | Taner - Forest:

The reaction surprised him. Without a moment's consideration to possibly passing out, this guy wrenched himself to his feet and stumbled about. Amadi winced at each jostle and bump of the injured wing, but quickly schooled his face when the guy tried to come back around to sanity. He took a low long breath and opened his eyes wide, his eyebrows up some so he could get all the light possible in his eyes hoping to see this better. He didn't move yet, waiting for this guy to finish his panic. If he moved too, he was afraid of being attacked by self defense instincts, so he waited.

"Don't say that so freaking loud!" the man exclaimed. Amadi dropped an eyebrow. Why was he saying that? Amadi was the one who said it, and this guy was the one who was it. What was so wrong with saying it? It wasn't an insult, to his knowledge. "I'm not that, not anything like that!" Yet this man was a male, and he was winged. Amadi took a second to reassess that as he stood up. Yup, he definitely had a penis. Yup, he had an Adams Apple too. He didn't have much of a waist either, and no breasts. His eyes scraped over the injured bird-man assessing the 'man' part of it as he creaked up.

His knees protested and he adjusted himself to a straight enough stance. He felt the flush of his arms as he stretched his back by folding his arms. "Don't say what?" Amadi challenged. He picked up his eyebrows again, still trying to see better. He blamed it on some of his other forms, and their obsessive compulsive need to keep wide eyes. "Winged man?" It was better than one of the multitude of things he actually could have said. Harpy, Tengu, Fairy, the list went on. He couldn't hide the amusement in his voice. This guy was not very sharp right now. "Who would hear it from here?" he pressed.

"Shut up, damn it!" the winged man snapped. That much energy had to be from diverting his pain. Amadi shook his head, he could understand needing to stop the pain. Amadi coughed and covered his smile as he saw the guy brush his hair. Hopefully he didn't make it any more of a mess, because that really didn't help. Still, the regal mess of this male's head was something to be admired.

"God, this is just so messed up," the stranger muttered, closing his eyes and tilting his head back against the tree. "Look, I'm just gonna go now, okay?"

Go? Go now? Amadi stiffened and straightened from his slouch. "No." How could he possibly lose this guy just like that? He didn't even know if he was going to call reinforcements, or if he was from the city like he was, or if he was from some portal out here. How could he possibly think he was just going to escape like that? No, if this guy was stupid enough to come out into the woods unprotected, he was not going to leave them without answering some questions.

Amadi watched in wonder as the man stiffened. "Excuse me?" he asked without a trace of movement. That control was impeccable, especially with the damaged wing. This guy could be an actor.

What would be a plausible story? He didn't waist time thinking. "You would cause a massive panic if you walked out of here like that." The young bloke dropped his arms, one hand resting on the hilt of his blade again. Hopefully this guy would see his stiff pose, the threat of the blade, and remember just who he was dealing with, an unknown.

The bird barely opened his eyes. "Don't you think I know that?" Amadi didn't bother shaking his head. He really didn't think this guy knew that. Why would he suggest leaving if he did know that? Well, it was a quick problem he tried to point out. It wasn't really what he meant, but this guy seemed naive of the threat. How did he miss that he was Amadi's to do with as he pleased until he found a way to defend himself? This guy was not what he was expecting.

"Besides, I checked before I came in here. My car was the only one in the parking lot."

Car? He drove here? How did he drive with wings? Amadi frowned and rocked back on his heels a bit. How would that even look? Would one wing be sticking out of the window and the other folded across the passenger side? He couldn't even fathom them both being tucked up behind his back. How could he keep them there? How did practically sitting on them Not break them?

What in the world did he just ask? "Um. Why didn't you just walk?" He diverted. He had no idea what this guy just asked him, but he asked something.





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Wed Mar 05, 2014 7:16 am
ScarlettFire says...



Micah - Forest:

"Um. Why didn't you just walk?"

Micah blinked at him, eyes wide. Walk? Walk? All the way out here? He couldn't be serious. There was no way he'd walk. "Because it's a long walk and it's hot," he ground out, pushing off the tree. The kid's hand was on the handle of his knife. Micah moved slowly back towards where he'd been crouched before. His left wing dragged slightly and sent little threads of pain up into his shoulder and back. He reached the leather harness he'd struggled to get off earlier and dipped down to pick it up.

"Is that for torture?"

He swung back round to glare at the kid. The boy looked a little confused. "No," Micah hissed, tightening his hold on one of the leather straps. "Why the hell would you think that?"

The kid shrugged. Micah shifted his stance, tiling his head. That hand was still on the knife's handle, and the the boy seemed a little tense. Micah frowned at him.
"With friends like you, who needs a medical license?" - Paimon, Aether's Heart


“It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission.” - Grace Hopper.





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Wed Mar 05, 2014 7:29 am
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Aley says...



Amadi | Taner - Forest:

Ok, so maybe that wasn't the best thing to say. Hopefully it did it's job though and got this guy on a different topic, and not leaving. Well, not leaving wasn't really his choice until he got his wings under control and that would take a while. Amadi was startled out of his thoughts examining the limp wing when the stranger spoke.

"Because it's a long walk and it's hot," The stranger headed off at what appeared like a random direction away from the lake. Amadi couldn't see what was there, but he kept his distance, moving a little closer to where he knew the entrance to the 'park' was so he could head this guy off if he tried to break for his, car. Hot, well he couldn't contend with that one. He had no idea what temperature it was.

The man leaned over carefully making Amadi pull his face out in pain. He bit his lip and forced his eyebrows to relax, widening his eyes again. The man picked up some leather contraption. Amadi couldn't help himself it came out before he thought it. "Is that for torture?"

He flushed and flattened his face, stiffening, and pulling his head back giving himself a thick neck from the tension there. That was not supposed to be out loud. He suppressed a wince when the guy swung around and stared at him.

"No." He was practically seething. "Why the hell would you think that?" Ideas of tormenting birds in bibles tossed across his mind and he shrugged.

It was perfectly reasonable. Birds weren't really that nice and it was just a bunch of constricting straps. What was he even doing with it? Amadi couldn't even figure out where up was on the thing and it looked like it went along his chest. Surely it had to hurt, whatever it did. It was not a belt and it was leather.

He was being stared at with the light colored eyes. Amadi couldn't make out what color they were, but they were light. "You can't leave," Amadi asserted again. "You dislocated your wing or something." Yes, play stupid. Please buy it. "Plus, I don't even know your name. I mean, you're the first winged man I've met and I am not going to miss telling my parents about this, so I might as well have a name to call you instead of the stranger." He felt his jaw loosen some as he tipped his head. "I could call you Mr. Tengu" Does he know? Can I hint to him enough that I know? "if you like, until you give me a name," Amadi wondered if this guy would buy his innocent act. "but otherwise I'm going to be real soar to tell them anything about you if you don't have one." Amadi sniffed and wiped his nose with his muddy hand, letting the blade flash for this guy again. "Mr. Tengu probably doesn't fit you at all though, does it?"





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Wed Mar 05, 2014 7:58 am
ScarlettFire says...



Micah - Forest:

Micah blinked at the kid as he started rambling. His eyes widen at the mention of telling his parents. "No!" Micah shouted, back up into a tree. "No, don't tell them anything about me!" He grabbed a handful of hair, eyes darting about again. That was bad. Very bad. The kid couldn't go tell anyone about him. Micah had to make sure. He pushed off the tree a little and hissed, "Don't tell anyone about me!"

"Alright, but in return you have to to tell me what you are."

"Fine," Micah muttered, but he didn't offer up his name. Not yet. Micah frowned again. The kid had mentioned something a couple of times now and it made absolutely no sense at the moment. "What the hell is a Tengu?"

The kid looked a little bewildered. "You seriously don't know?"

Micah tensed. There was a look in the kid's eyes now, and the fact that he'd
flashed the blade of the knife at him, that set Micah on edge. "Micah," he finally said, sensing that he should probably tell the kid his name. He got the feeling that there was something off about this kid and figured he should play along. "My name is Micah."
"With friends like you, who needs a medical license?" - Paimon, Aether's Heart


“It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission.” - Grace Hopper.





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Wed Mar 05, 2014 8:15 am
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Aley says...



Amadi | Taner - Forest:

Amadi watched the man curiously as he spoke. Eventually he saw the panic rising up like a bubbling pot and it boiled over.

"No!" Micah shouted, back up into a tree. "No, don't tell them anything about me!" He grabbed a handful of hair, eyes flailing about. He pushed off the tree a little and hissed, "Don't tell anyone about me!" If this guy wasn't masochistic, Amadi was going to sue himself for misleading information.

At least he was getting somewhere. This guy knew he was a threat to this society. He understood he could not be talked about as a winged man to other people. Amadi had serious doubts about his mental capacity though. He'd gone so far as to expose the blade of the knife for just a short while, and he didn't even seem to recognize the situation he was in. Why would he even come out unarmed anyway? "Alright, but in return you have to to tell me what you are."

"Fine." Silence. Amadi waited patiently. "What the hell is a Tengu?"

Amadi's eyebrows picked themselves up walking up his face. "You seriously don't know?" He frowned some and tipped his head away from the guy looking across his cheeks at him. How was he supposed to take that?

"Micah," Oh a name, smart. Amadi smiled at him, praise be the wise man who gives his captor what he wants. "My name is Micah."

That was not a typical name like Bob, or Troy, so he had to have something going on, right? Amadi smiled. "Taner." He drove a car, he at least deserved the human name. If he gave him Amadi, he might say something bad. "So how does a winged guy live in the city?" Amadi asked taking his hand off the blade and crossing his arms in front of his chest again. He put both his hands in sight instead of tucking one away, a sign of peace, but resistance. He took a few steps towards Micah gauging his reaction.








Poetry lies its way to the truth.
— John Ciardi