[Fini]

@Huckle

]

sign and mouthing are in #6f00ff
The same freedom you feel
Is what's been blowing in my sail
Since I arrived here

A fresh spring rain fell at a steady pace from the mid-morning sky, the forest mostly hushed save for a few birds that still sang their little songs, nestled away within her den slept Fini. The blue female dozed soundlessly, safe and warm from the drizzle of raindrops.

A pleasant dream of a familiar face gripped her full, lulled into a false comfort by the dusky Kroni, the other female's nose nuzzling against Fini's cheek fur as the pair laid side by side next to a river. The surrounds where blurry, unfocused, but there were shades of green and brown, mixed with some pop of vibrant colors. It felt so real, and her mind would have allowed her to think it. "I missed you." Came her softly sweet voice, unnatural, foreign, and lightly accented. Kroni turned, golden gaze boring into her and her mouth opened to reply. CAW!!

Startled from her sleep, eyes opened wide and fur bristled as the blue female glanced around, a silent shout strained from her throat and her eyes finally met what had caused her little scare. A curious crow had poked its head into her humble little abode. Fini blinked at it for a moment and it blinked back, head turning from side to side as it studied her and she studied it. A simple movement of her paws and it hopped away, bumping into the side of the den slightly and going into a spooked frenzy, flapping about madly and finally taking flight.

She stepped out of the den then with a stretch of her back legs and and a yawn as droplets of water began to hit her pelt, flinching as she looked up at the gray sky. Blue gaze trailed back to look for the crow, but instead she caught the dusky-dark coat of a stranger instead. She'd feel her heart nearly leap from her chest, as she stood like a deer in headlights, tail giving an idle wag here and there. Kroni?! The blue girl finally managed to sign.

[Rune]

There was something particularly healing about spring. It was a beautiful time of the year where change remained a constant. It represented so many things. It meant warmth. Renewal. Life.

Rune felt cleansed beneath its gentle downpour.

The sound of flapping wings eventually drew his attention. A crow soared high above his head, landing on the tall tree he sat underneath. His own little feathered companion, Figaro, slept peacefully, tucked warm and dry beneath the shelter of the aviari's own feathers. For now, the two of them were content to remain where they were.

"Up to mischief, were you?" he hummed softly, tilting his head. The crow ruffled its feathers, fixing its dark gaze steadily on him for a moment, perhaps intrigued by the canine's similar attributes, before its attention suddenly shifted, appearing to look at something beyond him. Curious, Rune turned his head to follow its gaze, something blue immediately catching his eye. When he realized what it was, however, he froze.

Oh.

Shifting uncertainly, Rune studied the wolf silently, limbs rooted ever so still. He watched her like a hawk. Or perhaps a quail was a more fitting description. He was not a creature particularly adept at socializing well with others. Especially those with sharp teeth. He twitched, swallowing.

One half of him, the half that remembered fangs and floods and a child bled out before a sea of apathy, told him to ignore the woman and go on his way with his feathered companion. But the other half of him...

The other half, the more reasonable one, spoke a little bit louder.

This is not that place.

Rune shifted again, uncertain still, considering the woman's blue figure a moment longer. Out here was different, he had to remind himself. Out here meant there were no rules. No boundaries. No chains. He was safe. Gathering his resolve, he breathed in deeply, steadily, before lifting his head to finally meet the woman's (oddly hopeful?) gaze.

"Hello," he greeted, softly.

Around them, the gentle rain continued to fall.

[Fini]

@Huckle

]

sign and mouthing are in #6f00ff

In a certain time, in a different place, if she was back there and had been more adventurous maybe she would've seen his face before. Maybe she would have known the feathered figure that spoke out to her in a gentle tone not at all fitting the likes she had met thus far.

Saboro had many things escape it's maw, she was one of them. Her mind fed off stories of the real workings of that place, how naive she was to it all. There was wounds there, genuine trauma, the likes she had never suffered, lucky enough for her. However, other's did. They lived with it, people like Kroni lived with it everyday. How broken did you have to become in order to fit the mold of a place like that?

And why hadn't Fini been broken like so many of them before her?

Pale blue eyes blinked at him, he seemed as hesitant as she did. There was a resounding silence between them, one she could never hope to truly fill, besides the ambiance of the forest around them. The far off bird calls, and rustling of leaves if a breeze tugged at branches. There was a sense of hopelessness that wanted so badly to drag her under and rip the wind from her sails. No, this wasn't the person she was looking for, and she felt a painful ache in her heart. However, it was someone! Her lips slowly pulled into a weak little smile, ears drooping some as she looked at him, and someone was better than no one at all.

Toes twitched with the thought of signing to him a greeting in return, but again she felt the aching sting of a memory. It was Kroni who had figured out this language with her, it was Kroni who only understood her. Out in this world you were voiceless, and that was a hard thing to come back to terms with. Hello, I'm Fini. She mouthed instead, it'd been so long since she had to resort to it, and some part of her felt a bit disheartened at that fact, though her smile never extinguished.

I'm... I'm looking for my friend, we've been separated. Her name is Kroni, have you met anyone with that name? There was a newfound hope that was attempting to take hold in her chest, her pale eyes aglow with unending resolve. For all Fini knew, this wolf (that's still up for debate?) could have been a forest god and yet all she cared about is if Kroni was safe and nearby.  Please, I... I don't know what else to do. Her gaze fell from his, casting down to the wet ground below.