[ @
LagMonster ~ ]
II. Yours, Mine... Ours?
His realization didn't come without some troubling thoughts. As he made for a nest that night under the fading pink sky, chased with blue, Coel had a sinking realization that he needed to start fleshing his Clan out before the troubles of being alone came tearing at his wings. Being a lonely Leader of a practically non exsitant clan made for some trouble, especially for those so-called predators who hunted in groups.
"You!" Came a familiar shriek as the smaller length of purple and red dashed towards him. "Hey, are you staying? You don't have a lair!" Dez gasped, glancing around the area. Her bright wings were tucking against her sides, and with some thought, Coel noticed she had flown and ran to his spot amongst the reeds. "I... I do have a lair, and I do believe I'm staying." Coel said slowly, not wanting to speak too much, considering Dez had a big enough mouth for the two of them. The purple femme shrieked with the sounds most Guardian's used to gather others, and launched herself at Coel, tangling up and around him in happiness. before she jerked away from him, as if his scales burned her.
"What about your Search?" Dez whispered, staring at him with identical Wind-Flight eyes. "But-! What about your Charge! Did you find it, are you going to find it? How? When will-" It was Coel's turn to take charge, and he quickly whipped a wing over her head, silencing her before she could talk herself into a serious tizzy. "Dez," He started, carefully folding his larger wings back against his flanks. "First of all, I have a name. I'm Coel," He lifted a clawed hand to stop her from talking over him, already showing an Alpha sense over the purple femme. "Secondly, I've found my Charge." Coel stepped back and spread his wings, showing off the territory he had claimed.
The female shrieked and bounced, mirroring a young Guardian's traits instead of a fully grown adult. "Coel! I'm so happy for you! Not many Guardian's find a Charge in their homelands!" She trotted back and forth, her tail lashing excitedly behind her. "Does this mean you're going to start a Clan?" She asked, freezing on the spot as her light green eyes glinted with happiness. "I have to tell Xerxes!" She chirped, and without listening to Coel, she spread her ruby red wings and took off, flying back to the Clan that had taken her in. The male shook his head, a smile tugging at his mouth regardless of how she seemed to steamroll over him.
He turned back to his Charge - his territory, and began to scent mark how large it was, taking into consideration the other faded and fresh scents of the bordering smaller clans. He wasn't about to take them over without any help. Coel sighed, scent marking the borders of his territory before he looked for a place to call the dens. He wasn't sure what was making him do this. He hadn't been part of a Clan before he found this one. How was he going to take care of others if he had never had someone look after himself?
'Windsinger, help me.' Coel prayed, before he set off to find an appropriate location for his den.
-~-
It was dusk by the time Coel had dug enough out of the side of a hill, reeds growing furiously tall on either side of the entrance, giving him some protection against enemies and scouting dragons. His stomach was howling with hunger by the time Coel considered himself finished, and as he exited his new den, something smacked into the side of his neck with some force. Flinching, the Guardian drew back and frilled up, before he saw the flittering Fae known as Xerxes, struggling under the weight of a dead Sun Flecked Fieldmouse. "D-dez will come with more," He gasped, before Coel offered a clawed hand for the mouse to be dropped in.
It wasn't much, but it could quell the howling hunger for a short while, until he could hunt for his own.
As predicted, the female Guardian came barrelling with a satchel of food hanging from her mouth, and without the clumsy 'dash now, think later' gait she was able to place the satchel of food down and grin up at Coel. "Some food for your stores! You have one of those, right? Please tell me you don't just have a central den," She frowned suddenly, and the way it looked on her, it struck such a chord in Coel's body he never wanted to see her upset like that again. But, her words were true. He had only dug out what was enough for him, without any thought of food storage or nesting dens, or anything. "I haven't finished," Coel said with some certainty.
"Oh. Alright. Well, Xerxes and I shall leave you to it, then. I can smell your scent markers, so that's always good." Dez said, making no attempt to actually 'leave' Coel to it, whatever 'it' may be. "If you need help with anything, and I mean anything, let me know, okay? I know I'm a big mouthed small boned Guardian, but-" A leathery
whamp on the head from Xerxes cut her short. "Ow!" Dez said, before glancing at Coel with a sheepish look. "If you need help," She said with some finality, "then you know where to find us." With that, she turned and headed back, the dark Fae following, zipping back and forth across the back of her head.
Coel didn't start to eat until they were gone, but once the food was gone, he felt more lonely than he ever had when he was on his Search. Sighing, he trudged back into the den and began to carve out secondary rooms, reserving himself to this task for the rest of the night.
