[017] - OOM - In Berinhed's Forest (Adventure II)

[tristranthorn]

In Berinhed's Forest Tristran outfaced on of the great, tawny eagles, who would have carried them both back to its nest to feed its young and was afraid of nothing at all, save fire.

Stardust, p.168 (Graphic Novel)

The star asks him where they are going, where they were. This is the only way Tristran will really know the names of places -- if someone asks him directly. He has no idea how he knows, but he knows.

"Up ahead is a forest," he answers her, "Berinhed's. We are on the path leading directly towards it; you can already see the trees."

He readjusts his shoulder-bag, getting lighter and lighter as the days pass by, and shrugs. "Unfortunately, I am running out of provisions. I do hope that there is a village somewhere on the other side of the forest."

Comments

[an_evening_star]

"Couldn't I just ask you?" she laughs - head canting curiously. "Or is your internal mapping tired out after all that walking we've done?"

She certainly knows that the majority of her is a fair bit more than tired out - but as much as she is fond of bitching, she is equally fond of not looking like she is a helpless pastry maiden.

[tristranthorn]

Tristran grins lopsidedly.

"Well, that's true. But I'm quite certain there should be a village nearby. We haven't passed one in a while -- usually one should turn up by now."

[an_evening_star]

"Everything looked so much closer together when I was home," she grouses, tugging her hair out of her way and glaring lazily upward - she misses that awful excuse for a hat.

"One would think that people never want to get anywhere."

[tristranthorn]

"It must be very different up in the sky than it is down here," Tristran muses aloud, turning his head skyward as well.

"Even when we were on that pirate ship and in the clouds, everything felt different. I don't know how to explain it, but it felt ... unlike anything I could ever experience here."

[an_evening_star]

"Might've been the thinner air getting to your head," she teases, then smiles - one of those pleasant, disarming ones that she's been lax about covering up lately.

Her shoulder bumps his nonchalantly, "And of course it is not the same - can't be in the air on the ground, Prince Charming."

[tristranthorn]

He laughs.

"You're right." He sounds amused. "I mean, I did miss being back on solid ground when we were up there for a couple of weeks, but being up there gives you a real sense of the otherworld -- it is calming, better than anything I could ever feel here."

He shrugs. "It probably all sounds very silly to you, though, doesn't it?"

[an_evening_star]

"Why would it sound silly?" she inquires, nose crinkling thoughtfully.

A shrug.

"I think that you sound a bit like home, to be honest."

Not that she ever really is when it comes to telling him the vast majority of what she's thinking. (Though she doesn't really consider that dishonesty as much as censorship.)

[tristranthorn]

They are now at the edge of the forest. A couple steps forward, and they will officially be setting foot into the sea of trees.

He reddens at that, for no particular reason (that he is directly aware of), and shakes his head.

"Well, you're from the sky," he says. "So it must be very normal for you." He pauses. "And you've told me time and again how miserable you think the ground is."

[an_evening_star]

"It is not so terrible," she allows rather reluctantly, sounding a bit like a very petulant child offering an unwanted apology. "At least not all of the time."

She peers up at him, still frowning mildly.

"I mean, when it is not raining on us - and we're not bleeding for some reason."

[tristranthorn]

Tristran smiles, hands automatically going to his pockets.

"I'm glad you've changed your opinion of it," he says, "because not everything about this world is bad...despite our rather bad luck."

They walk into Berinhed's Forest, Tristran not even noticing that the scenery has gone from clear skies to foliage in so short a distance.

To be completely honest, Tristran has been enjoying his conversations with the star as of late. Oftentimes, it makes him forget where he is, as though nothing else could really matter but what she says to him. And then he'll realize how silly that has to be, and reality will suddenly be present again.

[an_evening_star]

"Not really changing," she chews her lower lip. "Just - reassessing."

The problem with forgetting yourself and getting lost in someone else is really just that - you forget all sorts of things.

Like how you look like an utter idiot when you grin like that, or how walking is kind of difficult when you aren't looking in front of you, or the fact that glittering in a completely conspicuous manner does attract attention - no matter how unusually pleased you are feeling.

[tristranthorn]

"Well, that's good enough for me, I suppose," he responds with a half-laugh.

He continues walking forward after that, more or less in silence, taking in the scenery and observing the different species of trees. From above, he can see gaps and cracks between the foliage that reveal the open sky, blue as anything, but with a hint of grey, as though rain might be approaching.

For a moment, Tristran thinks he's seen something like a great shadow pass over them and he stops in his tracks, frowning slightly.

[an_evening_star]

Yvaine's not particularly in the mood for anymore rain - nor is she really in the mood for large, ominous shadows. (Not that many people ever are in the mood for large, ominous shadows - just making a note of Yvaine's position on the matter.)

"Tristran?"

Her eyes close as she pauses, letting out a mild sigh.

"That did not happen, yes?"

[tristranthorn]

"You saw it too," he says, and his words can either be a question or simply a statement.

He takes her arm, then -- a sort of automatic, protective gesture that he'd recently picked up after much real-life training -- and carefully leads her towards a thicker gathering of trees, still looking upwards.

[an_evening_star]

"Actually," she continues conversationally, allowing him to lead her without any protest. "I happened to be pretending that I hadn't seen it."

There's a sudden blotting out of the sun again - and a screech that makes her shoulders stiffen, trees bending slightly with the motion.

"Though I might admit that I saw it that time."

[tristranthorn]

Now might have been a good time for brandishing his sword, but he doesn't particularly want to catch the attention of whatever it is that seems to be circling the trees above them with the metal's reflection.

(Besides, he's still working on his sword skill.)

"What is it?" he asks, voice low.

It can be noted that they are standing dangerously close to each other.

[an_evening_star]

Well, at least any and all cheerful glittering has sputtered out in a most timely fashion.

"How am I supposed to know?" she whispers back harshly, turning to face him and blinking - swallowing, eyes crossing for a moment- as her nose nearly brushes his.

Oh, he's - he's not usually that close to her height.

[tristranthorn]

"Perhaps we ought to --" ...what? Fight them? Defeat them? Run away?

He doesn't even know what it is they are facing.

Not to mention, he had no idea how close he was to Yvaine until now, and that makes him momentarily forget about the entire strange shadows thing.

"Uh." He shifts his gaze back up to the sky, just as that now familiar shadow casts itself once more atop the trees, accompanied by that shrill squawking.

"It sounds like some sort of bird..." he whispers, hand slightly tightening over her arm, breath hot against her skin.

[an_evening_star]

There is, of course, a situation. A very possibly worrisome and important situation, all things considered. Ah, but that situation is taking backseat to this interesting sort of haze that she's found herself in and the fact that she can feel him breathing.

He really should stop that - it's distracting.

"Hmm?" she hums almost absently, swaying forward a bit before his fingers tighten and her eyes fly wide, breath catching like a something trapped.

She clasps her fingers over her mouth quickly to muffle the noise and squeaks lets out a quiet, "Um, bird. Yes - I - of course."

[tristranthorn]

As though quite unsorry to burst in on the star and the half-mortal boy's awkward fun, the shadow becomes a whole lot more solid as something swoops into the trees, rustling leaves, snapping branches and screeching in a high tone.

There are tawny brown feathers, Tristran distinctly notices (once he's past the fact that he can practically kiss the star right now), and other unmistakable birdlike qualities about this very, very large creature. And if they don't find some place to hide fast, they'll be spotted.

He pulls her towards the trees and forces Yvaine down to the leaf-covered ground quickly, just as the bird swoops through again -- all by instinct, really -- and manages to be ... well, quite on top of her at that point.

[an_evening_star]

Yvaine is finding lately that her life is rather like a series of very unfortunate sets of circumstances one after another with very little time in between for proper contemplation upon any of them. It's really not all that terribly fair.

She'd really like to whine, or cry, or just scream - oh, but life is having none of that. Life is utterly wretched and enjoys finding new and creative ways to mock her.

"Correction," she murmurs, low - breathing labored and eyes unfocused from the sudden vertigo and the fact that he is still much too close. "It is a very very big bird."

She doesn't know what to do with her hands - or with the fact that certain death is doing it's looming thing once more and all she can think of is what he would do if she kissed him.

It's vaguely problematic. The bird is rather big.

[tristranthorn]

Tristran raises his head slightly, staring upwards, eyes scanning the immediate environment around them, searching for sight of a wing, or something.

Then something lands with a resounding thump a short distance away from where they are hiding, clawed talons landing against the soft, dry ground.

They move slowly, one confident foot after the other. He can spot it through the space through the foliage.

Tristran glances back down at Yvaine, far too something to be aware that he has never been this close (or in this compromising a position) to the star before.

Instead he gestures for her not to even breathe a single word, one finger touching her lips lightly.

[an_evening_star]

See - that there? That with the sharp beak and the inhumanly large, pointy, dangerous-looking talons stalking about not too far away? Yeah, that just about sobers her up neatly.

Not to say that some corner of her mind isn't mildly intrigued by the fact that her lips are tingling. They're obediently silent for once, but still tingling.

'Lovely,' says the overjoyed arc of her raised eyebrow. 'Just lovely.'

[tristranthorn]

They wait in complete silence for a moment as the bird stalks past them, Tristran barely even breathing until his blood is pumping in his ears and he thinks the bird has gone off somewhere.

He straightens a little, scrutinizing the space between the leaves, and then once the coast appears to be clear, he sits up and lets out a breath.

[an_evening_star]

The star just lies there for a few more moments, flopping one arm across her eyes and reminding herself about the importance of breathing. And of personal space - she's fond of personal space.

Really she is.

"Our luck," she mumbles, propping herself up - voice barely loud enough to reach him. "Is either horrid or astounding - I am not precisely certain which."