{Liz & Kat} Non-muddy forest explorations! {Hydra & Measle}

"When I was a little one I used to try and chase arctic hares, and I hardly ever actually caught them." She smiled and sat to relieve the pressure on her leg. "But when I did manage to catch them, they tasted REALLY good." She scratched her side and laughed. "You 'are' quite skinny for a human your size. Most can't believe I was ever any smaller than I am now. But I guess we're a group of misfits and that's alright." She heard a bird up in a tree somewhere around and her ears perked. "Well I hear plenty of birds but no fuzzy little rabbits." She wanted so badly to play tag like she did with her siblings, but she remembered that half the time her leg wouldn't work so that became more of a wish than an idea.

“Definitely a group of misfits. Ah well, there are worse things to be than a little unusual. I don’t think I even know what a rabbit sounds like. What noise do they make?” Measle asked, pondering it over. Cattle went ‘moo’, birds tweeted and dogs barked, but rabbits didn’t have a noise. It was weird. Surely they deserved one.

“It’s been a while since I made rabbit stew – thanks for reminding me.” Jackdaww added. That had been one of the only things they had eaten out in the woods for a while, and it suddenly dawned on Measle that, in order to make the delicious stew, Jackdaww must have been out catching rabbits. How on earth had that passed him by? Ah well, his track record for noticing things was almost unmarked, so he could get away with it this once.

"They squeak every now and then, but otherwise they're nonvocal. I know most other small furry animals are QUITE vocal but rabbits are the odd ones out on that." Their fur was extremely soft though, and she sometimes just wanted to cuddle up to the rabbits instead of eating them. Nowadays she avoided eating rabbits because she didn't want to mess up their lovely fur. She much preferred larger things like deer or even things like badgers to rabbits, they'd gotten too fast for her to catch. "I'll admit that the first time I ever caught a rabbit I just wanted to snuggle with it because it was soft and furry and looked like something you used for a pillow."

“Aww, that’s sweet. I’ve never seen one in one piece really, only ones Jack brought back for stew. They did look cuddly though.” Measle said. He realised that, although compared to Jackdaww he was all-knowledgeable; he still had so much more to learn before he was grown.

“That’s really interesting – I thought they purred or something.” Jackdaww chipped in, grinning daftly. Measle shook his head and laughed, settling himself down next to Hydra – close enough to feel the chill emanating from her skin.

“Well I never would have guessed. If I ever see a rabbit, I will tell you whether or not I think it looks like a pillow, or if it makes a noise.” Measle chuckled, not sure what to make of it all.

"Measle I told you they're almost completely silent little creatures and they're very furry. Actually they do sort of purr when they sleep, but it's almost un-hearable." She smiled. "In my opinion we small dragons are MUCH cuter than any rabbit." She leaned close to Measle and whispered, "You're much cuter than any rabbit I've seen." She hid a snicker and rested her chin on his shoulder like a dragon a 4th of her age would do if she were in a playful mood. "Also smarter, and more fun to travel with." She flushed bright red and continued to smile and snicker occasionally.

Measle went red at the edges of his dark scales, and nudged Hydra playfully. “Well, I can’t compare you to a rabbit, parse, but you’re cuter than any other small furry thing I’ve seen around here.” He whispered back, staying flushed and pinkish. Then, good old Jackdaww stepped in to ruin the moment.

“Now that was touchingly pathetic. Let’s get going, shall we?” he said, making a face. Measle made one back, and ruffled his scales indignantly.

“Thanks, Jack. You really do have excellent timing. Not.” He said, rolling his eyes. However, Jackdaww had a point – it was getting well on in the day and they hadn’t set off yet, They probably should get moving soon.

Hydra got up and grimaced. "Walking. . .Not something I'll end up doing much of. I will probably be flying instead of walking." She wasn't phased by Jack in the least, her displeasure had overridden her possible embarrassment. "Jack when you find a suitable female we will probably do the same to you." She laughed a bit and took off into the sky. "My leg has proved to be too difficult to deal with for the time being so I'll be flying until it stops hurting so much." She stayed closer to the ground and looked at her companions. "Are we ready to go now or do we need to pack anything?"

“There isn’t anything to pack, so we can go now. I’ll just grab the supplies bag, and we’ll be off.” Jackdaww smiled, waving as Hydra took off. Measle stayed where he was, feeling sorry for Hydra and her poor, injured leg, before forcing himself to move and follow Jackdaww.

“Yes, you will definitely be getting the full embarrassment treatment when that day comes, Jack.” Measle said playfully, following him closely. Jackdaww laughed in response, and hefted the supply pack onto his shoulder, before setting off due-northwest through the trees.

Measle’s mind didn’t leave Hydra, however. He was in a constant state of worry, and couldn’t bare thinking about her being in such discomfort. It pained him to see her fly away from him, and he wanted to follow, but he had a feeling Jackdaw wouldn’t let him until they knew where exactly they were going.

Hydra fluttered closer to the ground so she could keep both an eye on her companions, and an eye on the path ahead of them. She noticed that Measle seemed distracted and flew lower after seeing that there was no danger ahead. "Measle? Are you alright you seem off?" She notified Jackdaww that as far as she could see above the trees there was no danger ahead, and landed by her friend after figuring out how to keep her leg off the ground but still keep pace. With a reassuring nudge, she gave a hint of a smile. "Is something bothering you? Or just distracting you?"

“Oh, nothing. I was just worrying - I hate seeing you in that much discomfort.” Measle said, a little glumly. However, now that it had been clarified that it was clear up ahead, he felt that he would actually be able to fly with Hydra rather that walk with Jackdaww. He could definitely tell what the more favourable option there was.

“Do you want to fly again, to save your leg? I can probably join you now that Jackdaww knows he’s safe.” He asked. He knew his stamina in the air would be terrible, but no matter how much it ached his wings, he would have rather been there by Hydra’s side.

“You two are fine – just don’t stray too far.” Jackdaww called back, from a little way up ahead. He had overheard their conversation, and decided to give Measle a break. It wasn’t every day they travelled with company, so Measle deserved the chance to make the most of it.

"My discomfort is not something you need to worry over, Measle." she said softly. "I worry enough over it myself for the both of us." She lightly butted her head against the side of his neck. "I'll walk for a while then we can fly." She wanted to compromise since she knew he didn't fly all that much. She could stand a little walking before she made him use his wings. She made do using only three legs to walk around for a while and it didn't seem all that important that Measle try to fly. She stayed totally silent for most of the rest of the time she could walk until she decided to take off. "I can't to walk for much longer, I'm off to scout ahead."

“I can’t help it – your pain is my pain, Hydra.” He said softly, before slipping into silence as they walked. He ruffled up his scales, and pushed away the thought so that he could enjoy Hydra’s company. He couldn’t stay worried when he was that full of butterflies.

“Ok, I’ll probably join you in a minute.” Measle said as Hydra announced she couldn’t walk much further. He unfolded his wings part-way and sped up his pace to pass Jackdaww.

“Don’t get into any trouble, will you Jack?” he asked, laughing a little. Jackdaww rolled his eyes and stuck out is tongue.

“I won’t – I’m not a child, no matter what you may think.” Jackdaww insisted, despite his childish gestures. Measle rolled his eyes, and sprang from the ground and into the air.

Flight came easier after yesterday’s adventure, and he found himself in the air and out of Jackdaww’s sight in moments. Hopefully it would last a little longer this time, because he wanted to spend as much time up there with Hydra as possible.

Hydra looked around and smiled at Measle. "You sure you're okay to fly? Your last landing was a bit of a bust if I remember correctly." She had only been teasing obviously, and laughed a bit. She soared through clouds and cold wind and felt lighter than air. She playfully loop-d-looped and called, "Catch me if you can slowpoke!" Walking was no longer her strong suit, but her wings were very strong and would carry her to the ends of the earth, at least she thought they would. She was three times more confident in the air as she ever was or would be on the ground. The air didn't make her feel like she was less of a dragon because she couldn't keep a certain pace, and it certainly improved her mood.

“I, erm, meant to do that.” Measle said sheepishly, before nodding in response to Hydra’s question. “I’m fine flying – it’s getting easier anyway.” He explained calmly, keeping pace with her.

Then, as Hydra flew off into the clouds, he sorted in surprise. He hadn’t been expecting such a turn of speed. His wings thrummed against the air as he forced himself to go faster, chasing her up through the cloud bank into the thin air above.

The clouds looked fantastic from above. It was like looking over a snowy plane, covered in ice sculptures and waves of cotton-wool fluff. He could see Hydra flying away from him a little further on, and doubled his speed, using his tail to steer himself carefully. He knew the strange shapes all around were just cloud, but they looked strangely solid in this light, and he didn’t feel like crashing into one and finding out what was in the middle.

“Slow poke? I’m catching up!” he shouted, laughing as he flew. He was tiring a little, but it was far more fun than walking would have been.

"Worried over crashing into a cloud?" she teased lightly as she slowed a bit to keep pace. "I mean sure we're not the only ones flying around but most everything steers clear of us." She glided along beside him and licked his cheek. "But you're still slower than me dearie." Her face had turned a paler shade of blue and her cerulean eyes sparked like tinder to a flame. She hid in a cloud and laughed. "Don't be scared you hardly feel the actual clouds when you fly through them." She flew back out to face him and grinned widely. "Don't be a scaredy dragon now Measle."

“Scaredy dragon? Me? Never!” he laughed, watching as Hydra vanished into a cloud bank. He would have felt much more comfortable if they had been storm clouds rather than white, innocent ones, but he couldn’t have Hydra think he was frightened of them.

Taking a gulp of air, he dived into the cloud. His eyes were filled with mist, and he felt damp all over, but he knew he was quite safe. “You see, I’m no scaredy dragon!” he shouted. His voice sounded muffled and hollow inside the cloud, and he couldn’t see any sign of Hydra anywhere. He looked around helplessly, even though he couldn’t see a thing through the cotton-woolly cloud. Maybe this hadn’t been such a good idea.

She tapped him on the side with her tail and smiled. "Follow me! I'll get you out of this fluffy mess." She sent a small chill along his wings and spine as a little joke and stayed directly in his line of sight and flew down at a slight angle, soon finding herself out of the clouds and looking around for Measle. "Measle? Where have you gone my little lightning cuddle bug?" she half teased. She became a slight bit worried when she couldn't see him after a minute or two. "Th-This isn't exactly funny, Measle! Where are you?" she called. She fluttered for a moment or two her eyes darting around everywhere hoping she hadn't LOST him in a cloud, Jack'd likely skin her!

Measle jumped as Hydra flicked him with her tail, terrified for a moment. He hadn’t been expecting that, and it had scared him out of his skin. However, after a slight shiver from Hydra’s chill down his back, he started trying to steer himself around. The trouble was, he wasn’t entirely sure which way was up anymore, and he hadn’t seen which way Hydra had gone. He beat his wings, in the hope the cloud would spread out a bit and showing him where he was, but since he was in the middle of a large cloud, nothing happened. He then decided to just fly in the direction he thought would take him underneath the clouds. That would at least help him get his bearings.

“I’ll be there in a minute, Hydra – I’m just a bit… stuck.” He shouted at the sound of Hydra’s worried voice. He wasn’t exactly sure how to deal with the cloud, but hearing hydra had told him which direction to head in. He flew for a moment, and found that his head stuck through the last layer of cloud after a moment or two. However, he was upside down and back to front, which meant everything looked strange and unfamiliar.

"Measle go straight down! It's just a couple of feet I think from where you are!" She fluttered nervously, her heart pounding in her ears. She waited on edge, the air around her getting subzero cold and her tail started to swish like a cat's. She flew up closer and called out, "Measle! I'm right under the cloud can you hear me? Just follow my voice!" She had felt panic start to set in and her whole body shook. 'Where is he...?' she thought worriedly. She felt a bit dizzy with all of this going on and shook her head. "Please be okay."

Hearing Hydra’s panic, Measle turned his head. She had flown to where he was before, and now that he had peeked out of the cloud, he must have been hidden from her sight again. “I’m over here.” He shouted, still trying to figure out why everything was upside down, as his head stuck downwards out of the cloud. His wings were stirring up the cloud above, keeping him stable despite his impossible angle, and he could feel his tail thrashing around in the open air above the cloud bank. When he finally realised that was where he was, he lost all balance, and tumbled head-over-heels in mid-air. He managed to catch himself after falling for a second or two, and quickly righted himself, but he still felt odd. He had been very upside down, and hadn’t quite gathered his thoughts back together.

"Measle if I have to I'll drag you out by your tail!" She got right up at his tail and shouted. "UP HERE!" She tugged at his tail and waited for him to get himself right side round before trying anything else. "You got yourself twisted up in a cloud, you seem to have lost your sense of direction." She was glad she at least knew where he was at this point! After this no more cloud flying with company! And certainly not with her lightning bug of all people, she couldn't bear to lose him. She waited as patiently as she could for him to find his brain, and soon found herself getting a bit annoyed.

Measle flew up through the cloud to join Hydra immediately – he had managed to un-fuddle himself by then. He burst through the cloud with his head hanging a little sheepishly. “I… I think I got lost.” He said, laughing at himself a little. He had wisps of cloud tangled around himself still, and decided it was probably best for him to stay out of the clouds for a while. That hadn’t been much fun, really.

“I’m sorry, Hydra. I didn’t mean to worry you.” He said, hovering beside her for a while as he surveyed the cloudscape around them. It looked like a forest, filled with plumes of cloud thrown up by the two dragons larking about in the cloud bank. It was astonishing how much it had changed in the few minutes he had been stuck.

"You really scared me you know." she said still a bit frantic and not knowing whether to yell at him or to cry. She looked away from him slightly embarrassed at her behavior and flew lower to the ground. She knew they couldn't go so high anymore and looked up at him sadly almost. She wasn't used to having to worry about someone else besides herself, and it had her all worried over nothing it seemed. "Come on let's find Jackdaww, still gotta make sure he's okay." What made her suddenly care about this total stranger? She only knew him two days and it was like she had fallen in love with him! Not possible!

“Ok.” Measle said slowly. He could tell he had done a Jackdaww and made an idiot of himself, and Hydra sounded really upset. He trailed after her nervously, and started to realise something. He was following her as if it was his duty, and he knew that, if she asked, he would do anything. It was a strange feeling – he was used to having things demanded of him, but this was the first time he had ever actually wanted to pander to someone else’s needs over his own.

As the ground came nearer, he felt his wings tiring quickly. His little misadventure in the cloud had taken quite a bit out of him, and he took to gliding more to reserve his energy. He made a little pact to himself that he was going to start flying more, so he could stay in the air for longer when it all came down to it.

He could see Jackdaww walking a little ahead of them. While they had been messing around in the clouds, Jackdaww had actually kept walking, so he had overtaken them. He couldn’t seee anything wrong with him, but with Jackdaww it was impossible to tell.

Hydra carefully landed on the ground and hurried to catch up with Jackdaww to check him for injuries. After what happened with Measle she wasn't quite sure of anything that she was feeling. "H-Hey, Jackdaww, you doing alright?" she asked looking up at him. She wanted to go hide somewhere for a little while and just let this feeling pass, but she wasn't going to cause Jack any more trouble than she already had just by being there. "No bruises, broken bones?" Her voice steadily got softer and softer and finally she just shut up and kept walking, her eyes locked on the ground.

» [Syn & Hydra] Little Wandering Child
» The Forest of Tarz (Exxor x Eldarwen)
» Measle {Miniture but Mighty}
» :: Mystery of the Godless Forest :: -{Aero, Nen, Spirit, Rogue}-
» Hydra :: A Place In This World