Hushed Willows every touch

So there was a new fellow in the pack, not a born fae but looked like he could be a cousin of Fionn- silver and black, shining ruby eyes. The soldier was curious of him, of his abilities as well- and wished to test him, see if he might become a decent warrior in time. Or perhaps battle was not his calling at all- but either way, it was good to keep recruits on their toes. And so Fionn sent out a summons for @Caw , hoping for a friendly spar.

caw is not familiar with the voice that sends up the next call. the faerie court has been very busy, it seems! there are so many people coming and going, and he has not even met everyone who was here in the first place! but this is just more reason to go, and so, abandoning his previous task of basking in the sun, caw gets to his paws, shakes his fur out, and trots off after it.

it is not too long a walk before he sets eyes on his summoner. his fur is a pretty mix of black and white and grey not so different to caw’s own, his eyes also a gleaming scarlet. with a friendly wag of his tail, caw pauses in front of him, wondering if he is here to question his presence in the faerie court as well. “hello!”

Oh, this guy was so friendly! It was sort of refreshing. Wagging tail, upbeat hello, the whole shebang. Fionn returned his own wagging tail and a gentle smile, Hey, I'm Fionn, one of the faeries here. You are...? After allowing a moment for Caw to introduce himself with ears pressed forward, he would continue. I just wanted to check and make sure you have reasonable self-defense skills, since there's some trouble in the mountains right now. Whaddya say to a spar? And there he was hopeful, eyes sparkling as if he might beg the boy to accept.

“fionn. good to meet!” caw smiles eagerly, excited to hear his tongue. the faerie queen may not have understood his language – but her name, while very nice, was decidedly not irish. of course it made sense that not all faeries would know it, he was not complaining! it was just good to know that maybe he was not so far from home.

“am caróg! also caw, if is hard to pronounce.” he would introduce vrána, but she is off doing…something. caw is not quite clear on the details. but he will surely have the whole tale when she returns! for now he is thoroughly distracted by fionn’s words. “there is trouble in mountains? for faeries?”

it is unfortunate for caw that he is, generously, not the most skilled when it comes to any sort of combat. it is fortunate for him (in a manner of speaking) that he is completely unaware of this. sparring is fun! of course, he has only before done it with his siblings. he wags his tail again. “can spar! will help defend faerie court.” he has promised the queen, after all!

I love caw ówò

 

So sweet, this Caróg- Fionn though that in time they could be good friends, perhaps. When he inquired of the trouble, the faerie nodded rather reluctantly. There are some troublemakers who settled in the mountains. They don't keep to themselves, either- they often harm people outside their home. Fionn shrugged. He didn't have all the details and specifics, but he'd met Donovan, and heard other things through the grapevine. 

Soon enough Caróg had agreed to a spar, and the faerie beamed, joyous with his response. Alright, then! He crowed, and without warning, charged at the male, hoping to sideslam him. Real danger did not come with warning, and Fionn needed to test his reaction time and instincts.

thank you…. :sob:

to simply hear that these wolves were around attacking strangers might have perturbed caw, but he would have gone about his day and promptly forgotten the whole affair until it came back to bite him. to hear that they are attacking the faeries, however! this is a much different story.

this is not good for the court or the troublemakers. surely they must know it is bad luck to harm a faerie! he knows for certain that whatever happens next will not be good for these strangers – perhaps they simply need this explained to them! before caw can even consider offering the suggestion, however, fionn is diving directly at him, and he can offer little more than a startled yip before he is knocked on his ass.

he is already scrambling to get to his feet even before he hits the ground. after a moment of writhing around in a confused tangle of limbs and teeth and fur, caw rights himself and lunges back at his new friend, jaws wide and aiming for whatever might happen to be closest.

Caróg is knocked over, and Fionn is slightly disappointed, yet not surprised. Learning to fight took time, and if these were his baby steps, that was okay. They scrambled for a minute and then Fionn's opponent was on his feet again, lunging towards him. Whew. Jaws were aimed too close to weakest points like the neck as he stood straight on, and so Fionn did what he could with his limited time, he shifted so that the fangs might meet his shoulder or flank instead. Teeth collided near his ribs and he winced, pushed slightly with the force of the impact as well. But the master would not let the student beat him... and so he whirled in a somewhat circular motion, his own fangs aimed for lower flank or haunches of Caw.

caw is, of course, unaware that falling over would be nearly an automatic loss in any real battle, because he has not been in a real battle. he is much too absorbed in his attempt to bite fionn, who twists and does not manage to get out of his way in time; caw’s teeth skate along his ribs, and his tail flags eagerly with the success, until the other wolf’s jaws clamp suddenly around his flank.

with a startled yip, caw whirls around, nearly overbalances with the sudden weight attached to his hind leg, and snaps at fionn’s back and tail as he wiggles like a hooked eel, doing his best to scramble free.

The way Caw nearly loses his balance does not go unnoticed by his silver companion, and though Fionn wishes to end things soon, he feels his opponent wiggle and snap towards his back end. Fionn winced- fine, if he wanted to be free, let him be free- and unhooked his teeth from his side. He could feel there was something to be gained here though, and so while Caw snapped at his tail, Fionn headbutted him hard in the side, using his full weight to try and knock the other over.

caw twists and twists and snaps until the teeth in his leg finally loosen. it stings a little, but he does not mind; fionn’s tail is directly in front of his nose, now, and with nothing holding him back now caw is free to lunge after it, growling eagerly in the back of his throat as he moves. he is taking this about as seriously as he takes anything. so he is, of course, unprepared for the headbutt that catches him in the ribs.

he hits the ground with a sharp whuff as the impact drives all the air out of his lungs. lying in the grass, caw wiggles on his back, blinking at fionn. it is hard to catch enough of his breath to get to his feet. but it is just a game! so he is not too bothered.

Fionn hadn't meant to steal his breath persay, but Caw would be just fine, and as Fionn watched him wiggle on the ground, he trod over and stood beside him. Looking down with playful grin, Wanna call it my win yet? He teased, though the question was genuine- if his new friend did not have enough energy to go again, they could likely call it quits for now.

caw does not feel particularly hurried to get back to his paws; instead, he lays there, following fionn with his eyes as the other man trots over to stand beside him.

“can have win,” caw allows cheerfully, as though he has any hope of turning this around for himself. he has stopped wiggling now, though his tail thuds slowly against the packed dirt and grass. he does not mind losing! “you are good fighter!” it is, of course, a low bar when it comes to caw, but a genuine complement nonetheless.

fading : )

The boy gives him the win, and Fionn beams brighter, stepping back in case he wanted to get up. You are a good fighter too, Fionn returns cheerfully, moreso out of politeness than real truth. Once Caw found his footing, the two would chat for a little while longer before going their separate ways.