raindrops on roses

for @Keyx ! :)

Autumn stepped into the little meadow, and was immediately shocked and in love with the scene. Despite the cold, flowers still prevailed. She practically bounced forward, leaping into a patch of dandelions, some yellow, others silver. It was a soft little bed, and so she laid her bright red head back against the flowers. Ahh... This is the life! She said with a grin to herself, closing her eyes and putting her paws behind her head. As her eyelids fell she begun to feel tired. She told herself not to fall asleep, despite how drowsy she was and how comfy her flowerbed was.

The strangely colored owl had been flying over head silently as always, working to make his way to a forest after having visited the Glacier. He wanted to allow himself to rest a bit, and to maybe catch a meal on the way, but something stopped him. Keyx's sharp eyes were quick to catch the sight of a bright color, one that reminded him a bit of the fires he'd seen on occasion. The color was as beautiful as ever, and he knew he needed to retrieve some of it to keep for himself. It was only as he flew down closer to the bright color that he realized it was not his for the taking, as it belonged to a very-much-alive fox. Such creatures were often noted as being competitors towards owls, as both species were quick to hunt rodents and other small creatures. As an owlet, he'd been warned to beware them, but the fox appeared to be asleep.

Figuring she wouldn't miss a bit of her fiery fur, the young barn owl landed near her carefully, and hopped towards her cautiously. When he was close enough to stretch out his neck and grab some of her fur between his beak, he hesitantly clamped down on a small clump of it and jerked his head back quickly. Keyx wanted to move as quickly as he could, as there was no doubt that the fox would be rather angry with him once it realized what he was doing.

Just as she had begun to drift off, she felt a sharp tug on her fur and yelped in pain. What had dared to disturb her sleep and comfort and yank her fur?! Autumn jumped up, eyes narrowed and angry. She saw a little owl next to her with a little of her fur in his beak. What the heck?! Do you have no manners?! You better quit messing with me. And if you wanted my fur, you could just asked. I wasn't asleep yet. She growled in annoyance with a roll of her eyes. (Even though she had been pretty much milliseconds away from sleep.) He better be nicer if he was gonna stick around any more time at all.

Though he had been rewarded with a bit of fur, he'd also seemed to have “awoken the beast”. Well, not awoken, as she claimed to have not been asleep yet, but he'd surely riled her up a little bit. While she seemed agitated, the bright vulpine made no move to attack him, which was what he'd been expecting. Keyx was not usually one to act without any manners at all, but he hadn't thought she'd give him some of her fur even if he had asked. Now, after having heard what she'd said, he felt a bit bad for acting on a whim. “Sorry, vixen,” he murmured, his words a bit off as he attempted to speak through the fur that laid between his beak. Lowering his head for a second, he placed the small clump of fur by his talons, reaching one out to secure it down and keep it from blowing away. “I thought you would try to eat me if I just asked.”

Before he'd started to learn to fly, his mother had told him and his siblings stories about the woods they lived in. His favorite had been the one about the Heart Warrior, but he'd always hated hearing how the grand barn owl had met his demise—at the teeth of a crimson fox. He was sure the story was nothing more than some tale his mother had spun for them, but he still felt hesitant around the vulpine, keeping his wings ready to take off at any given moment. “Wouldn't it have been odd for an owl to just come down and ask for some of your fur? Would you really have given me some if I'd done that?” His head turned downwards as he asked questions, the motion a bit much for his few questions. It was his first time officially meeting and speaking with a fox, though, so he couldn't help but be a bit over the top.

She grinned, her sharp teeth showing, but then giggled. I don't eat birds! I'm a friend to them. I eat squirrels and chipmunks. But I talk to birds, they're smarter then little rodents with a blueberry for a brain. Autumn explained. She was especially friends of Avia, Deathbringer, and Lavender. A sparrow, a crow, and a raven. But she would talk with all birds. Meh. Probably not. But now that you have it anyway, I don't want it back. You can keep it. She said. Keyx had a point- Autumn didn't go around giving her fiery fur out to everyone.

When the sharp little teeth appeared, Keyx was about ready to fly right off, with or without the for in his beak. As the sound of giggling rang out, however, his mind was put at ease and his body allowed itself to relax. So the fox did not eat birds, but befriended them instead. “It's good to know I don't have to worry about you eating me!” If his eyes could have gotten any larger when he exclaimed his words, they probably would have been at risk of falling right out of their sockets. Lucky for him, and the vixen who would have had to bear witness to such a scene, his eyes would never be able to widen enough to lose his nightly orbs.

“Thanks for letting me keep this fur of yours,” the young owl said, more out of courtesy than anything. Even if the fox hadn't wished for him to keep the cluster of fur, what could she had done about it? He was the one with the wings, and could also quick up the bright bit of softness quickly if he needed to. The lack of distance between them could have aided her in retrieving her fur, but since she didn't eat birds, Keyx didn't worry about that. The girl didn't seem like the type to kill unless she was going to eat the body of whatever life she'd taken, leaving him with not a single ounce of concern or worry for himself. After all, to him it appeared as if he was completely in the clear, which he probably was since he'd been given “permission” to keep the fur he'd plucked. "Maybe I'll give you some feathers sometime to make the trade fair."

sorry for the delay! This thread is not dead.

Autumn was rather happy at the thought of having feathers. Since she didn't have a permanent den she couldn't use it as a bedding, but maybe she could wear it or weave it into her fur. Thanks! And no problem about the fur, you already yanked it out anyway, so. Why are you so eager to get my fur, anyway, huh? She asked with a grin. Autumn knew it's hue was pretty- but what did he do with it? She suppoused he would probably line his nest with it, but you couldn't be sure till he told you, right?

It's alright! c:

Keyx didn't know what would become of his feathers if he gave some to the girl, but if he saw them weaved into her fur he would be amazed. It was already such a pretty and bright color, and with the contrast of his dark colors added, she was bound to look even prettier. He didn't know that would happen, though, he just knew that he'd been asked something about why he wanted the fur. It was simple, really, or at least it was to him. "It is very beautiful," he started. "And soft, as I realized after plucking it from you. I could use it for my nest when I settle in a single spot, but I might use some for one of my art pieces." The last time he'd explained what his creatures were to a wolf, she seemed to not quite understand why he would make them. The young owl hoped that this fox, with fur as magnificent as it was, would understand his pieces, and see the beauty in them as he did her coat.

As he explained, she smiled. Art was really cool, and Autumn liked it, but had never been good at it, from the times she'd tried to sculpt with clay. She tried her best, but they turned out as brown globs of... Hardened clay. Hopefully he was more skilled. Oh? What kind of art do you make? She asked with genuine interest. Autumn's skill and hobby was traveling. Or maybe storytelling. Stories were a signifigant part of the culture she was raised with. Legends, Lore, Myth, and Tall Tales were all the stories behind acient spirit foxes from olden times. Traveling, however, was not very important in her family. In fact, at first her father had looked down upon the decision, thinking she was too young to leave home and she'd probably get herself killed. But eventually he realized it was her true passion, and let her go. Autumn left home glad for the adventure of a new world.

The young owl was, to put it simply, thrilled to hear that the fox was actually interested in his art. The last two he'd met who had seen his pieces either stole from them, or did not understand them. It was discouraging both times, as he'd always assumed everyone knew about and appreciated art. Since coming to the Wilds, however, he'd learned that such a thing was not a case in the strange land—he'd also learned that he couldn't find any other owls to share his art with, which had been a bummer. What he learned aside, Keyx was brought back to present day and to the question asked of him. What kind of art did he make? Oh, if only she knew (which she soon would)!

"I make sculptures out of items I find or pick up," he started, wasting no time at all. "Sticks, twigs, stones, mice bones. I use all sorts of things, even the pellets I cough up and my feathers, to make all sorts of sculptures and other pieces of art." Back home he'd been able to do much more, as his parliament held many things to use that the owls had collected from humans over the years. They never stole, though, just took what was no longer needed or things that were being wasted. "If I take my time, I can even use my talons to carve things into trees and stray pieces of bark. Not to mention sticks and the bones from my meals sometimes."