Porcupine Ridge my family’s gone, but i don’t care because i love them

forward dated to the 28th. hoping someone from reneian empire or seelie court can join but it’s AW!

Cupid was never a fan of mountains. Places like this were the exact reason why. You had to watch your every step if you didn’t want to end up pancaked on the ground. Traversing this place was extremely tedious and annoying. How the hell did he manage to live up here before? It was those hidden fields that kept him from leaving. They offered a nice place to rest.

He was relieved to stumble across one of them out here. As soon as his paws touched grass, he flopped down and rolled onto his back.

hello!! hope it is ok if i drop by :)

caw does not pay much attention to heights. he has jumped off his fair share of big ledges he probably should not have been jumping off of as a child, and now he knows better, of course! but the drops do not bother him. this is good, because the mountains behind the faerie court are very tall and very steep; caw is still careful when he steps along the ridges. vrána would be very unhappy if he was not, and he does not like it when she tugs at his ear.

the cliffs are mostly very steep and rocky, but every so often they drop into little hidden fields. caw pauses to sniff around the edges of each in case there is something interesting there – maybe some plants he has been looking for, or even ones he does not know – but mostly they are just grass and aspen trees. this does not stop him from spending a few seconds rolling in the grass, even if it does mess up his feathers. vrána complains about this too, but that is okay! it is for fun. caw does not mind.

caw has not been keeping track of the number he has passed walking the ridge. but the sun is high in the sky when he finds the next, and it is very hot on his fur, so he eagerly follows the next path to the next little alpine meadow, hoping for some nice shade. and there is some shade, cast from the pine trees and cliffs. this is what he was expecting! what he is not expecting is the big lump of wolf in the middle of the meadow.

he understands, though! after all, he has been doing it all day. “hello!” caw chirps as he approaches, tail swaying behind him and, displaying his complete lack of regard for personal space, drops to the ground barely a foot away, wiggling on his back as he blinks up at the sky.

ofc!

And he wasn’t expecting some random guy to invade his personal space.

Cupid kept one eye glued on him as soon as he called out. As the stranger came closer and closer he thought no way this guy is just gonna get in my bubble. Boy was he wrong. This dude takes a seat right next to him and wags his tail like that’s a regular thing to do.

He fell on his side and stuck his paw towards the personal space invader. Woah woah dude. Step out of my bubble, then we’ll talk.

he is minding his own business! he is not being mean like orlaith. which is why he gives a little grumble as a paw rams itself into his ribs, snapping his teeth at the air. his jaws click together with a little snk sound and then open right back up; vrána, who has abandoned her usual perch so as not to be crushed under his back, soars past his field of view with a squawk.

she does not like it when he gets very close to people he does not know. she is just very cautious. caw does understand this a little, but nobody has attacked him yet! and this one does not seem all that inclined to either, even with the poking.

caw yips back at her, and turns his head, tail thumping on the ground. the tilt of his head and his tongue lolling from half-open jaws mask his complete confusion at the stranger’s request. “what is bubble?”

Well, seeing as he didn’t even know what a bubble was, it looked like Cupid would have to do all the work. Cupid rolled to the opposite side and sprung up to his paws.

Now that there was a comfortable distance between the two, he could get a good look at the stranger. He was one of the more weird looking guys he’d come across. The eyes were really selling that creepy feel. It’s not everyday you see someone with bright red eyes. His dark face really made them pop.

It’s another word for personal space, Cupid answered after looking him over. What’s your name, kid?

assuming caw doesn’t know cupid is a man so he’ll use she/her until corrected?? otherwise i can change it!!

cheek smashed against the dirt, caw is much too busy with whatever it is going on in his head on a daily basis to read the room until his new companion rolls away and springs to her paws. he does not get up; he blinks at her from his place on the ground, limbs askew and feathers sticking from his scruff every which way.

from this position, it is much easier to see who he is looking at. lying on your back in the grass is not good for that! he looks with big eyes at the perfect heart shape on her forehead, perfectly unaware that he is likewise being examined and only distracted from his scrutiny when she speaks.

“oh!” caw files this phrase back for future reference. “is okay. am friendly.” this is surely all that needs to be said! legs folded up over the curve of his chest, he tips his head down until he starts to resemble a flipped turtle struggling to right itself. “name is caw. of seelie court!”

thats fine!

He thought Cupid would just be cool with everything if he claimed he was friendly? Ha! Not in a million years. This guy—Caw, as he called himself— was very naïve wasn’t he?

I’m Cupid. of nowhere as far as he’s concerned. He was dopey, and Cupid didn’t feel as threatened as he did before, but he wouldn’t say where he’s from. He wasn’t gonna give out that information to any random guy he meets.

Seelie Court? Is that somewhere nearby?

it does not escape caw that cupid has not also told him where she is from, but this is okay. not everyone belongs to a pack; this must be the case. and that is okay!

“yes,” caw chirps. “seelie court is in willows!” he lifts his head from the ground and jabs with one paw in what he is fairly certain is the correct direction – over some mountains and towards the sea. then, in a slightly more hushed voice, as though imparting some grave and deeply secret information: “is home of faeries. am not a faerie yet. but will be soon!”

caw does not know how he is supposed to be made into a faerie. surely it is not this simple. but he has also given the faerie queen his name, which in retrospect he was absolutely not supposed to do, so probably she can do whatever she wants. there are worse things than becoming a faerie, after all!

“why in mountains?” caw continues, still on his back and staring after cupid. “are looking for packs here? faerie queen says saints are nearby. is good to be careful.”

His eyes were led to some distant place beyond the mountain’s peaks. Cupid took a mental note of the general location. Avoid at all costs, was scribbled in his mind. This was a simple ‘grab the shit and go’ thing. He could do without the obstacles.

Caw whispered about faeries or something like that. He didn’t know what he was talking about... nor did he care. Still, he smiled and nodded because he was afraid that if he didn’t the loon would go off on him. The Wooow. was fake, drawn out enthusiasm.

Cupid was grateful that the subject had changed. Nah. I’m looking for herbs. I remember there was a cave full of them somewhere up here. He was comfortable with the yearling knowing that much about him. Maybe he could point him in the right direction.

Then there were the saints. Man, these guys were pretty popular huh? And they were lurking somewhere nearby. Just his luck. Do you know where they are?

caw tilts his head along with cupid’s reply. her tone seems a bit strange, but she is smiling, so surely it must just be him. he nods eagerly. “faeries are friendly! as long as not saints. happy to meet visitors!” caw does not know this for sure, and orlaith is maybe not so happy to meet visitors, but the faerie queen was very nice to him! and also to the cougars as well, even though they did not ask to visit the court.

herbs, though! this is something he can maybe help with. “yes! cave to south supposed to have many. have not visited, though. sunspire good, and also faerie willows, with permission.” caw hums. he does not actually know that much about this place yet. he has not been here for long! and he is mostly focused on the ravens. anything past the sunspire is a very long way to go, especially since he is supposed to be helping the faeries.

particularly since the saints are around. “guard of seelie court says they mess with people near coast. but they come all the way to willows. saints alpha says they settle in mountains.” caw thumps his tail down again, happy that he has paid such close attention to the meeting in question. “he says three to four days away!” caw points with his muzzle down the spine of the ridge, in the rough direction of the sunspire. this is much easier to do, as his face is already angled in the correct direction. “think somewhere past there. probably near cave you want."

Friendly or not, he wouldn’t go anywhere near them. This trip was already longer than it should’ve been. He just wanted to grab the herbs and go. No pit stops required.

Seems like running into this guy wasn’t totally pointless after all. Now he knew the general direction of the cave, but he wasn’t too thrilled to know the saints could be lurking nearby. Just my luck, he muttered to himself. Maybe he should find a different place, but that could take ages. That cave had everything he needed. He’d just have to proceed with caution.

Well, he better get a move on. He needed to get back before Caerus started to worry. Thanks for the help. He turned to begin walking away. I’ll stay away from those saints guys.

caw nods agreeably.

“yes! be careful!” he chirps. he is still not really sure how scary these saints are, even after their meeting! but they were rude to the queen and that is all the judgment he needs.

it probably also means he should leave too, but the sun is still high and it is hot and he has been walking all day, so even if he does not have a new acquaintance to talk to, he stays put.

he blinks after cupid for a few moments longer. but she seems a bit brisk so this probably means she is able to handle herself. and she is also not a faerie so caw is not overly concerned. flipping back over onto his belly, he tilts his muzzle up to the clouds, yipping until vrána comes down to land beside him and starts furiously rearranging the feathers now angled awkwardly throughout his scruff.