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    COTY

    Assailant -- Year 226

    QOTY

    "But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura


    [open]  as if a glass could contain the sea
    #1
    The springtime sun is bright and brilliant as it shines down upon Ischia, a cloudless blue sky accompanying the warm rays. The waters of the ocean are calm as the crystal clear waves gently lap against the pristine white sand, the tide slowly ebbing away and revealing many shallow tidepools dotting the shoreline. In the bordering jungle, gentle squawks of paradise birds echoing through the canopy. Amongst the glittering sand and softly swaying palm trees, a young girl is standing perfectly still inside one of these pools, her pale blue nose so near to the water that her shivering breath causes ripples across the otherwise still water.

    Silvered fish trapped within the now luke-warm water nibble gently at her fetlocks, tiny little minnows whose scales glitter in the sun with each twist and turn. But it is not the fish that has drawn the winged girl to this particular tide pool - her steel grey eyes are focused on the jeweled hermit crab that shuffles quietly beneath her gaze. The crab’s shell reflects a bold ruby red in her eyes, its shell glittering and beautiful in the sun. She has seen these creatures before, but none with such a beautiful shell and Ciroc has become enraptured. She had been studying it for nearly an hour now, following it and trying not to lose track of it, wanting to find more. She wanted to find a blue one to show her sister.

    A loud splash draws her attention and Ciroc lifts her head swiftly, the light blue blaze paling in comparison to the deep cerulean of the rest of her face. She snorts softly, narrowing her eyes as she peers out across the line of the horizon. Her sister had mentioned mermaids that live in the reefs, ones with lovely songs and beautiful faces but with sharp, menacing teeth. Ciroc presses her lips together firmly, wondering if there was any truth in her sister’s story or if Sundari only meant to tease her. The winged girl’s face turns thoughtful and then she gasps, remembering the ruby red hermit crab she had been following.

    When she glances down it is gone from where it had been and with a whirlwind of movement, Ciroc searches the pale sand for the jewel-encrusted crab. When the glinting of scarlet catches her eyes lengths away, she gathers her legs beneath her and leaps from one tide pool to the next, splashing loudly through each one until she is caught up with the crab, her pale blue nose nearly touching its beautiful shell as it scrabbles across the sand with quickly shuffling feet.

    c i r o c





    open to any! 
    and also @Sundari ? <3
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    #2

    Life in Ischia so far isn't very much different than what it had been in Tephra before the nightmares began, only there's a lot more to explore. Everything is still new, and Sundari doesn't waste a single moment of her waking hours rooting out all the wonderful things that she can find. It had been a wonderful surprise to discover that there was more than one island too.

    And there were mermaids, though she'd only gotten the briefest glances at one. One day, though, she hoped she'd be able to talk to one and find some proof to show her sister.

    Sundari is circling their new home as a brightly coloured parrot when she spots her sister splashing through tidepools. A small laugh escapes her and it requires no thought at all to descend. She angles herself so that she is coming up behind her sister and gives a loud, obnoxious squawk as she attempts to land on Ciroc’s back, flapping her wings strictly more than necessary for the simple landing.

    If her landing is successful, the next thing she attempts is to climb up her sister’s blue mane using her beak and flexible feet to help her more than her wings (hopping up that short distance is awfully boring). “What are you looking at?” She asks once she’s on the crown of Ciroc’s head - attempting to peer down as best as she can only there’s a big fat blue nose in the way.


    Sundari


    @Ciroc
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    #3
    The sound of her sister catches her completely off guard. The young mare tucks her hindquarters beneath her in fright, opening her own pale blue wings to spread them outward from her sides, squealing loudly. She kicks out but it is useless; the parrot is already clamoring onto her, its sharp talons pricking at the darker blue of her topline as if tracing it like a tightrope. Ciroc’s eyes roll in realization, settling long enough for her beautifully colored sister to climb to the crest of her head, settling in the tangles of her two-toned blue forelock that now is permanently stuck in her bright eyes now that the parrot is standing on her.

    From beneath the bird’s large feet, Ciroc’s eyes glance upwards beneath a heavy brow. Her head is lowered as if the weight of her parrot-sister is heavy, her darker-tipped ears flipped back in displeasure. With a wrinkle of her pale nose, Ciroc throws her head upwards with a jolt in an attempt to loosen the large bird from her head. Her foreleg paws at the fine white sand beneath her hoof, whether or not Sundari remained on her head or not.

    She asks what she was looking at and suddenly she remembers. Ciroc gasps, leaping forward and scanning the sand expertly, trying to find the jeweled hermit crab in the midst of blinding white sand and sparkling, lazy blue waves. After a few moments of frantic searching, the mare groans. “Sundari!” She complains dramatically with a long whine, contemplating falling onto the sand to really bring home her disappointment. “You made me lose it!” The tide has already started to come back in, filling in the numerous tidepools with each passing wave.

    With a clenched jaw and a furious snort, the winged mare fashions herself a shape to match her sister - a macaw with a vibrant red crest melting into yellow and blue feathers. Her wings flap terribly in her anger, flying upwards to divebomb Sundari, hoping to nip her with her beak as well as frighten her into flying over the water.

    c i r o c





    @Sundari
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    #4

    It had been one of the things his Uncle Gale had told him. To blend in by becoming like the native wildlife. One of the last things that his Uncle had told him before he had vanished from Hyaline, and reportedly emerged in Tephra. Bolder had followed the rumors and the stories of shadows and nightmares to the borders of the kingdom, but once the young shifter had arrived, the land had been almost abandoned. His calls for Gale had echoed against the large ferns and shrubs - through the empty spaces of the jungle - and his search had ended with nothing.

    Perhaps, he should have returned to Hyaline.

    Mazikeen might not be worried - as he was growing and maturing - but Bolder felt the weight of his absence from his adopted home. What if something went wrong with Malik? And now there was baby Myrna to worry about. Something darkened his Aunt's face when she thought nobody was looking (but Bolder was always nearby, in some shape or form) and the adolescent pegasus had thought the answer could be found in Gale's departure. Something was telling him to return to the Pack (instinct?) and yet Bolder had come this close to the coast that he thought why not see the islands?

    Ischia and Islandres were in his sight.

    So becoming something smaller and with wings, Bolder flies over the waves. He soars until he settles on a nearby branch, adopting the colors of a vibrant bird nearby. He tweaks the beak a little, adjusts the feathers until the coloring is just right, and then turns his attention to a light dun wandering the shore. He is so entranced by watching her that the adolescent doesn't notice the way he changes to reflect the young mare, and soon he is a pale blue and gold parrot.

    What she does next calls him away from the branch and Bolder leaps into the air, squawking loudly to announce himself to the pair of birds. One of the parrots is like him - a shifter - and it makes him wonder about the other.

    "You should be nicer to your bonded!" he calls out, recalling Sickle and Oceanus as he soars across the beach (with no shadow). Perhaps a parrot was not as noble as a phoenix, but a companion should always be respected.



    @Sundari @Ciroc





    [Image: 37477440_mkk7ul7XODhpdJ7.png]
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    #5

    Sundari would’ve been happy to stand on Ciroc’s head forever - or at least until something more interesting came along. A small, bright laugh escapes her when her sister throws her head upwards to loosen her grip. It works but she sticks close and is just about to lower back down to Ciroc’s head, her sister leaps forwards and is clearly looking for something.

    There's a very short moment where she feels a little bad about whatever it is that Ciroc lost - but definitely not enough to apologize. And certainly not when Ciroc changes into a parrot and comes after her.

    Sundari is far too busy laughing to think about changing her shape. And then, just as Ciroc’s sharp beak removes one of her tail feathers, they’re interrupted by another parrot. Another shifter? It talks like one, anyway. Having a parent that can change her shape makes you pretty suspicious of all wildlife - is that leopard you’re about to pounce on really a leopard or is it your mom having a nap? Either way it’s dangerous but there is slightly more danger with one option.

    (She’d take pissing off a real leopard over her mom any day)

    His interruption would bring a smile to Sundari’s face if beaks enabled grins but since it can’t, she only releases a sad, agreeing squawk - going along with the idea that she was a companion. Besides, Ciroc should be nicer to her. Even if it was only while they had witnesses.


    Sundari


    @Ciroc
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