[PRP] Hello Again (Jay/Sal)

[Syusaki]

Sometimes Jay would wake up and realize she couldn’t see some of her friends anymore. It didn’t always hit her immediately. The feeling came slowly at first. It was easy for the horsewoman to grow accustomed to not sleeping in a hammock high up in a tree. She would often meet up with Senga, Iyari, or both early in the morning and talk with them for a bit, maybe try to bother them or tease them. It made the day seem somewhat normal, but it was when she took a closer look at the reservation that she remembered things were different. Meeting horsemen from other clans was now a daily occurrence. Some faces were familiar, but most of them were foreign. Sometimes she would search for a particular face, but Jay could never find them. They were already gone.

She would tuck in her wings then. She would tuck them in and wander around the sanctuary like a lost child. Once in a while another horseman would give her a curious look, maybe even a few words, but it always stopped after that. Most of the time they were far too preoccupied with rebuilding homes and other building structures. Jay should have been helping with the effort, but sometimes she just didn’t want to work. Instead, she seated herself in one of the trees seated at the edge of the sanctuary. Unlike the saplings dotted around the land, these trees were older and sturdy enough to support her tiny weight. Her feet dangled in the air, sometimes the sandals clacked softly together as Jay stared at the ground. Blue wings were half-spread out and partially covering herself. She tugged at her scarf while she quietly sang lyrics. She had heard it once upon a time in the human world, but Jay didn’t know where it came from. “Sitting here in Blue Jay way~” she murmured while swinging her head back and forth.

Something in the back of her mind told her to look up, so she did. Everything looked the same as usual—barren land, a few buildings here and there, walking horsemen. It looked normal, but that was before she observed the horsemen walking about. Almost none of them stood out, save for one tall figure with a dark robe and orange-green hood. It was familiar, so she straightened up, paid a bit more attention to the horseman. Jay fought down her bubbling hope that it was who she thought it was, but as soon as she saw white hair and red tattoos coiling around the arms, she slipped out of the tree.

Jay was unusually quiet as she tugged at the robe and tentatively murmured, “Sallie?”  

[Enoh Love]

Trees. Salbei didn't like trees anymore; not the Halloween trees, anyway. They had attacked him, disoriented him, and had gotten him lost so badly not even Faiyum could find him...and Faiyum was practically a tree himself. A famine tree, but a tree nonetheless. What brought him back near them was entirely unknown even to him, he just imagined it was a good idea; perhaps, deep down, he wanted to find a way to make a truce with the trees, at least to stop them from getting him lost. Because, clearly, it was their fault in the first place. Clearly.

However it seemed that fate had something else in mind, as there was a tug on his robes and a quiet, familiar voice sprouting a very familiar (and not entirely loved) nickname. The tug had been enough to stop him in his tracks already, but the name practically froze him; he had dreamed vividly of lost friends touching or talking to him, and both hearing and feeling it now made him hesitant to want to turn around. If this voice was just a hallucination, he just...didn't know what he'd do.

"Pretty Bird, isn't it a little rude to sneak up on someone?" He said quietly, his red eyes lowering to look at the ground around his boney feet. This was easier than turning around; if this was a lie, he just wanted it to vanish as quickly as possible.  

[Syusaki]

Sallie, you’re wrong. Trees are the best and clearly it was your own gosh darn fault for getting lost. :C

She still grasped the edge of the cloth, her muscles tense as she waited for a reply. Jay pressed her lips into a thin line, waiting and waiting until—Pretty Bird. Yes, it was that familiar voice, that familiar nickname. Jay knew this horseman, and she knew him well. “Sallie.” Her voice was louder, but not quite the annoying, high-pitched tone she was known for. It was normal and filled with relief. Jay wrapped her tiny arms around Sallie, or at least as much as she could. The horsewoman stretched out her wings, spreading them out to cover them both. “Sallie, you’re okay.”

Enoh Love

Ahhh sorry for the short tag orz

 

[Enoh Love]

"Pretty Bird." Salbei returned with the same amount of loud squeak in his voice...he was trying to mimic her, but it seemed his voice couldn't quite reach that pitch. It was a pitch he knew was real, because it was a pitch he couldn't even make up in his own head; it was all her, and he had never felt so relieved.

He had his back to her, but that just wasn't going to cut it anymore. Despite her grip and wings, the emaciated Sage turned to face her, leaning down a little more to properly wrap his arms around her small form. He pulled her flush against him, hugging her as tight as he dared.

"I am, I am~ " He murmured dismissively, finding his own wellbeing unimportant; he knew he was okay. Somewhat alone and definitely homeless, but okay. What was more important to him was the small War horsewoman, and he gave her a squeeze before leaning his cheek on the top of her head. "Ahh, little filly, I am so relieved that you made it!" He gave a breathy laugh, even leaning back to hoist her off her feet for a moment or two to swing her in a complete circle. Yes, he was that happy.

Once she was back on her feet he suddenly leaned back, almost out of her grasp entirely, his hands gripping her shoulders. "You aren't hurt, are you? No filthy Hunter got their hands on you? No, ah, afflictions?" There was insanity going around some of the Horsemen; it was a valid worry, and he didn't want to potentially lose another friend to an unknown variable - especially one he'd just found again.  

[Syusaki]

Jay giggled, her grip on the other horseman tightening. “Nice try, Sallie! ButIsoundmorelikethis!” Her voice rose sharply, easily falling into the speedy, high pitch both of them were familiar with. She smiled and buried her head in his clothes before he turned around. Jay curiously lifted her head to stare at Sal. Then she felt his arms wrap around her and she laughed. She tugged at the fabric of his clothes to pull him closer to herself.

She could feel his cheek on her head and she giggled again. Her hands clumsily reached up and felt around for his face so she could squish his cheeks. “And I’m super super happy to see that you madeitmadeitmadeit!” There was even more laughter from the horsewoman as the sage picked her up and swung her in a circle. Jay grabbed his shoulders as her feathers ruffled. “Sallie, you’re super super happy too!” She flapped her wings a couple times just before her sandals touched the ground again.

The warrior shook her head silently like an obedient child. “Nope! I’m perfectly fine.” Physically, at least. She flicked her gaze to the side and her expression darkened. “But the next time I see a hunter I’ll…” The tone of her voice was deep, threatening, but as her face lit up again Jay began to chirp as usual. “No afflictions either, but Senga…” She brought a hand to her lips as she mentioned her fellow war horseman and childhood friend (though he'd never admit it). “You don’t have those afflictions either, right?”

Enoh Love

 

[Enoh Love]

"Ah, you are right. IAPOLOGIZELITTLEMISSBLUE!" He rose his voice into as high of a squeak as he can get, which made him sound like a prepubescent boil, really. If he had anything more to say he was distracted by the way she squished his cheeks, but was alas unable to reciprocate the gesture as he was more intent on twirling her off her feet.

"Super happy~" Sal confirmed, against trying to mimick her tone and quite failing. "You are a dear friend, pretty bird. I don't know what I would have done had I lost you!" His intent stare returned as he questioned her health, and after she had said her piece he released the breathe he hadn't realized he was holding. She wasn't affected? Fantastic! That was the best news he had gotten all day.

"Pretty Bird, you will not engage one of those dirty humans without backup." He scolded her like a parent to a child, especially if the child was thinking of sneaking out. "They took down our home, we are weak, and we can not afford to be caught alone." Salbei was being stern; they had lost enough of their numbers, they couldn't afford another hit, even just a single Horseman. As easily as he put on his stern face he was relaxing again, sliding into a rather fond smile.

"Correct, dear one. I am clean of the Hunter's disease." He said softly, one hand leaving her shoulder to muss her hair in an affectionate way. "If your Senga would like some help, my friend and I are looking into this affliction as best as we can. Perhaps one day we may be of assistance." He and Fai had wanted someone with the affliction to come and talk to them (and to study them, but that was beside the point), and this seemed like a good opportunity to plug the cause. "How are you finding the Halloween hospitality?" The Lost Clans had yet to build themselves up from rubble, so as far as he was concerned, they were still in Halloween.

Syusaki

 

[Syusaki]

Jay giggled, lightly patting both of his cheeks at his multiple failures at mimicking her voice. “Sallie, maybe you should leave the imitating to me,” she suggested as she stuck her tongue out at him. “I feel the same way! I’ve only seen a few familiar faces since I’ve come here. It’s…boring.” The more apt word would have been lonely, but she refused to let Sal worry about her more than he already was.

She pouted at the famine horseman. “I wasn’t planning on doing it by myself! Ah, but if it’s one of the small fry I might…” Her voice trailed off as her face took on a thoughtful expression. If it was one of the newbies, she should be fine, right? Jay shook her head. “I may be scatterbrained, but I know sometimes it’s wiser to retreat when the odds are against you,” she grudgingly admitted, though she was far from pleased. “Even if I don’t like it.” Relieved at the return of his smile, Jay grinned back at Sal.

He reached toward her and she closed her eyes as he ruffled her hair. “Good good. One sick friend is bad enough.” She opened one eye so she could tug at one of his familiar necklaces. The corner of her lips tugged into another grin. “Your friend? Is it someone I know?” Her wings rustled idly. “I don’t know if Senga will agree, but I will ask him about it.” At the mention of Halloween, she pressed her lips together. “Yes, the hospitality. Hmmm.” Jay wiggled in Sal’s grip so she could take a few steps backwards. “I guess it’s alright. They seem cordial enough, Halloween and its inhabitants. But obviously we still have a lot of work to do,” she noted with a sigh while rubbing her arm. “I want to go home.”

Enoh Love

 

[Enoh Love]

Sal tapped his nose with a wink. "One day, my little bird, I will do better." It was unlikely though fun to say. His hand darted out, trying to catch her tongue but alas he fell short and just as quickly retreated his hand back into his robes. "I understand, precious one; one day we will be less...ah, bored." The Sage did catch her meaning of lonely, but politely played along with her choice of words instead.

"Even the smallest are dangerous, but if you must, be very careful." He was going to warn her to this there and back again. "Mmm...I don't know if you would know him, but his name is Mahir. He is also a Sage...has clever ghosting arms." He flailed briefly, perhaps trying to immitate the way Mahir's arms moved, but pretty much only ended up making himself look like a fool.

Close enough, really.

The Sage released his younger friend when she wiggled against him, letting her move as she wished; it was never nice to cage birds of course, especially ones that you called friend. No matter how badly he wanted to keep her somewhere safe...

"Unfortunately, that is no longer possible..." Sal trailed off unhappily, needing to be blunt though his instincts screamed to try and smooth it over. "That just means we will have to work harder to make this our home, hmm?"

Syusaki

 

[Syusaki]

Jay smirked at Sal. “Nice try, Sallie, but warriors are fast.” Technically it was the executioners who were the fastest in War; warriors were skilled in flying. But the bluejay was tiny and tiny usually meant agile and speedy. She pursed her lips at the particular emphasis on the word ‘bored.’ So the true meaning hadn’t escaped the sage after all, but it didn’t shock her. It had been a while, but they were still friends.

She shot the famine horseman an amused look. “I think I know size doesn’t matter too much when it comes to skill,” she mused while smoothing out the wrinkles in her feathered skirt. Jay sighed.

“Ghosting arms!” The term immediately held her interest. The jay’s eyes grew wide and she moved her arms just like Sal. Imitating a poor imitation, unsurprisingly, led the warrior to looking as much of a fool as Sal. “I will look for the sage with ghosting arms!” She moved her limbs, copying Sal’s previous motions. “He sounds very interesting. Mahir? MahirMahirMahir…” Jay murmured the name to herself until she ingrained it into her memory.

Her bottom lip jutted out. “I know.” I don’t want to. She reached out to grip one of Sal’s hands, her eyes narrowing suddenly as she imagined to herself what she would do to the hunters. Once Jay realized her grip was getting a smidge tight, she coughed and forced a smile. Her voice was tight as she reached for the sage’s bone necklace. “How about I make you another necklace? To represent a new start.”

Enoh Love

 

[Enoh Love]

While they had been friends for a while, he understood her terms because he felt them, too. They were essentially one and the same; the loss of so many friends meant a lot of free time, which meant boredom...but it was a painful sort of boredom, one that cause you to dwell much too much on what you had lost. So he only smiled at her, trying to keep the sadness out of it.

"Yes!" His smile easily became more honest as she immitated him, making them both fools. It was fun, and something distracting; plus, with all their various accessories, it made some interesting noises to boot. "He is very, ah, curious. Please do not be too offended if he gets into your personal space, or perhaps tries to pluck a hair or feather." The apology was in his voice; he had a feeling Mahir would do it, or try to, no matter what he was told to do. "You will have to tell me all about this Senga of yours!" He was just as eager to learn about her friends, too!

He clasped her hand with his thin fingers, saying nothing to the way the grip tightened on his and doing nothing more than giving her a small, reassuring squeeze of his own. Nobody wanted to make this their home; it was unfair that they had to start over, but it was reality, and she'd come around. She had to. The conversation changed without ever coming up, and he looked down thoughtfully at the necklace she was referring to.

"I would love another! I will not relinquish this one however, so you put that thought from your darling little mind!" His voice gained a cheeky, almost tsking sort of comment, like he was pre-emptively telling a child to not sneak a cookie from the cookie jar. A new start yes, but he liked the stretch of bones he wore daily, he wouldn't be able to give them up, not yet.

"What would you like to do today, my precious fledgeling?" They had their talk, they shared their worries, and now he was eager to do some activities. "We could explore some, or perhaps a little race?" His Mount's legs needed a stretch, he was sure.

Syusaki

 

[Syusaki]

“Curious.” She smiled at first, then grinned at Sal. “Offended? Sallie you shouldn’t have to worry about that at all!” Jay paused thoughtfully as she mulled over her response. “Well, maybe a little bit,” she admitted. Bandage-covered hands reached up to tug at the white flower carefully placed on her beaded headband. “Personal space is okay. I like to get into other horsemen’s personal spaces too.” She lazily leaned over so her head bumped against the famine horseman’s arms to try to prove her point. Sea green eyes pointed upwards, trying to catch glimpses of the white flower on her head. “But touching my things? Hm. Hmm. Hmmmmm.” Jay had no qualms about touching other people’s belongings, but the reverse was often the opposite. Close friends were welcome to fiddle with her things so long as they were in sight, but acquaintances not so much.

“I will try not to be too ahhhh possessive. Yes, possessive!” Her eyes lit up at the idea of describing her childhood friend to Sal. “Senga! Yes, okay! SengaSengaSenga is a bit taller than I am and he likes to wear a white wolf pelt and his hair is a pretty brown-ish colorbutit’snotreallybrownIdon’tknowthenameforit and his wings look snowy and he is a grumpybutt, but we that’s okay because he’s always been a grumpybutt!”

Jay gasped. “I wouldn’t want you to get rid of the old necklace. It’s a good necklace.” Her lower lip jutted out as she leaned forward to get a closer look at it. “What kind should I make? I kept some pretty rocks and beads and the forest has some pretty flowers. What do you think, Sallie?”

“Race! Raceraceracelet’shavearaceIlove races!” It was entirely possible that Sal wouldn’t be able to catch that last sentence.

Enoh Love

 

[Enoh Love]

"I will always worry, my dear." Sal sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. It was such a hassle to be friends with someone like Mahir, and yet he never particularly saw it that way. It was interesting, and different, and it usually gave him a lot to do, even if it was just damage control. Plus, Mahir was a brilliant alchemist and an eternal companion. The bump to his arm made him re-open his red eyes and turn them back down on her in a smile, offering a shrug to her worries. "Well, if he does and you can't get him to relinquish it, come and get me immediately. I can make no promises, but I could at least try to help." His offer was the best he could do, given Mahir's, well..Mahir.

"There is nothing wrong with being possessive of something that is important to you." It was always important to share if you could, but if something held a specific value past survival...well, it was okay, he figured. Mostly because he held many trinkets himself that he would refuse to give to anyone, no matter how important the creature may be to him. When he settled in to listen to her describe her friend, he did so with complete focus on her; luckily for him she was pretty descriptive, and he felt that if he ever came across Senga, he would know him right away.

And probably ask a thousand questions of him, because a friend of Pretty Bird's was a friend of his...so long as he approved of them. He had no doubt that he would, and would likely end up taking him to Mahir anyway, for his...condition.

"What an odd pair you must make, then! You've been friends long, I imagine?" She drew his attention to his necklace and was offering suggestions on the new one, but all he could do was smile at her. "I trust your judgement, little miss blue. Whatever you feel is best, probably is." He leaned down to her, to give her a tiny headbutt of his own as a sign of affection, and while he was there he was treated to the full blast of Jay's excited shrieking. He had no idea what the actual words were, but he got the idea: she wanted to race.

"Think you can keep up with me, hmm?" With a wave of his hand, the ground nearby started to rumble and finally split as an old, pale, and incredibly emaciated horse pawed its way to the surface. The creature shook its mane and immediately plodded its way to its master. The ground it had sprung from was pristine, as if it never actually happened.

syusaki

I WIN THE LATE-OFF

 

[Syusaki]

She stuck her tongue out at the famine horseman with her arms folded over her small chest. “But you still don’t need to! I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself just fine, really,” she insisted, the feathers of her wings fluffing up with childish dismay. Jay puckered her lips, making a face before grudgingly answering, “Fine. But it won’t be a problem. I know it won’t.” The warrior sounded confident, but honestly speaking she had no clue what would happen when or if she met Mahir. At the very least he sounded like an eccentric yet fun character, so she still anticipated the day she would be able to sit down and converse with him at last.

Jay giggled, revealing a row of pale teeth as she smiled at Sal. “Yup! We’ve been friends since we were super little—and we always hung out with his sister too! Her name’s Iyari, and she’s super cool. She has a lot of decorations and has feathers in her long, red hair and pretty green eyes.” She nodded, face flushing with pleasure as she described her two childhood friends to him. Her nose crinkled again, but she seemed happy to have the horseman’s trust. Chest puffing out, Jay placed her hands on her waist. “Leave it to me! I’ll make you something even better.” Another giggle tumbled out of her as he headbutted her.

“Of course! I’m super confident that I can be even faster than you too,” she insisted, bouncing on the soles of her feet. Her heart beat faster, and with each passing second she grew more excited. “Yesyesyes! I’llflywithmywingsandyourunwithyourmountyesyesyes!”

Enoh Love

coughs looks away