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Snowy
While Snowy had preferred the cold of the street the weather report did not remain favourable for the owl, especially after her dive into the lake to avoid the cops, so just this one, they decided to use the freehold to sleep beside the fireplace. She walks up to a source of warmth and quite literally makes her nest out of her jacket and and bag she found. If she takes up space, she would briefly argue before moving elsewhere but she was just so cold. Her feathers that made up her hair in her mein were white and wet as melted snow.
Avery
Avery needed to move and not be cooped up, so to the freehold hollow it was, because that was safe, and meant they could be out of the cold for a bit.
The anxious changeling has also brought their sketchbook, and happened upon wherever Snowy was sleeping. Not wanting to disturb the other feathered being, Avery silently sat down and sketched the fireplace.
Snowy
Yet no matter how sneaky she was Avery still saw the owl whip it's head around to face her without moving it's neck or positioning itself. It gives a slow blink and turns it's head again to look at her properly.
"Hey Aves..." She remembers... most of her name at least.
Avery
They give a slow wave. Unbothered by the head turn. Their beady black eyes stare right back at the owl.
"I hadn't meant to wake you. May I sit here, Snowy?"
Snowy
"Sure." She says. "I wasn't going to sleep for a bit anyway, I just wanted to get out of that fucking cold..." She says rubbing her arms. "Damn cops..."
Avery
"It can be quite warm in here. Much nicer than storage sheds." Avery nods, seemingly from experience.
Snowy
"Storage sheds? Never much considered that but I prefer the trash dumpsters and such. People tend to avoid those and I can sleep peacefully..."
Avery
A frown of consideration.
"People do, but its harder to get into a shed. Someone picking the lock will wake you up."
Snowy
She looks up. "I don't know how to pick locks but the smell is enough to draw people away..." She flicks her nose. "This thing doesn't work for shit but I can hear a pin drop in Vegas with these ears."
Avery
Avery looks blankly. "It isn't hard if you know where to look. I understand. I can hear your heartbeat."
Snowy
"Really?!" She blurts out in suprise. "This thing still works?!" She snorts. "But where do you look for old storage places to sleep in? Could make a good permenant stash..."
Avery
"Yes...it does. It is quite loud."
Avery frowns. "I always used to find them on the outskirts of the city while flying. I hid and stole for...I think two months, its been a year since then. It's much safer having people to hide around. Less chance they'll notice you when there's louder people around."
Snowy
She looks down at her chest and puches it with the bottom of her palm a few times to make sure it quiet downs a bit.
"I mean no offence but if you can hear my heart beat I don't know what 'loud' is to you but I doubt it's what I consider lo..." She turns her head towards the sound of a nearby scuttle before turning back to Avery. "loud..."
Avery
"Everything is loud. My girlfriend got me airpods. They help. She's really nice."
Avery scans for the scuttle sound.
"I'm okay right now. I'm...yours isn't the loudest I've heard. I guess the feathers help."
Snowy
"Girlfriend?" She asks.
"Hmm... well I think it's just me being a calm and rational person." Sarcasm drips from her tongue. "Or my winter mantle... owls are virtually silent after all."
Avery
Avery nods. "My girlfriend, yes. Well...one of them. I have two, and a boyfriend. This is the girlfriend I spend more time with."
Avery considers, tilting their head in a bird like curiosity. "No, you are not calm. You are stressed I think. Or busy. Or scared. Hearts beat faster for a lot of things. Winter does feel comforting to hide, doesnt it? They are careful, and quiet. And Sorrow is a common emotion."
Avery's mantle, while Summer, is faint, like many Winter's are.
Snowy
"That is... oh nevermind." She sighs and shakes her head. "My heart beat is usually quiet because I tend to sit on my fat ass all day and panhandle... the only time it's fast is when I'm running from coppers or causing mischief... or when I felt the silver thread losing it's slack... but now I imagine that asshole that held it panicing himself." She snorts, though deep down she knows it's not true. She's probably been replaced by now by another pretty white owl.
Avery
Avery looks confused. "Your butt is not fat? And why are you running from metal? Is that your frailty?"
Snowy
"..." She sighs. "...Firstly, thank you... secondly no it's cops... like police in big 'nee naw nee naw's..." She imitates a siren with her hooting. "Also what's a frailty? I heard of them but I ain't got a clue what they are."
Avery
"Oh...I know what cops are, yes. Why are cops made of copper? Well...there are the metal ones..." Avery thinks. "But I don't think they are made of copper?"
Avery looks at Strix. "They made us into characters in their stories. We have things that break us. They are things we cant do, or things that hurt us. Iron is universal, and will burn you. Then...it is tailored to each person. My first was that I must travel every day, I don't feel safe Ironside right now, so I traveled here and flew for a bit. I've satisfied that one for today."
Snowy
"Coppers came around first, but it got shortened to cop. Still used in England." She notes with a shrug.
"Oh... well uh... not looking forward to finding out what mine are." She shudders.
Avery
"Oh...I have never been to England." Avery considers. "How do you know its still used?"
Avery nods. "They are not fun to figure out. I kept feeling anxious when I woke up in the morning, so flew until I felt better. I eventually realized it was not just me being scared. It is okay to be scared when you are freshly escaped, you dont need to hide that."
Snowy
"I travelled a lot before I was taken... I could afford that." She states with a sigh. "But those nights are long long gone... I don't miss it." That one is truthful at least. "I was quite an ass when I can afford it."
"Why? Do I look scared?" She suddenly gets defensive as her feathers bristle.
Avery
Avery tilts their head the other way. "How long were you taken? And no, you do quite well at hiding it."
Snowy
"I... don't know... two years at least... long enough for my old life to move on without me." She sighs and clicks her finger bones.
"...What are you implying?!"
Avery
"It can be hard to not have that to go back to."
Avery looks puzzled. "I'm sorry, I am not very good with emotions. You are acting like I did, so I presumed you were scared. Lots of Lost are when they escape. Many still are. Its nothing to be ashamed of."
Snowy
"I... I'm not scared!" She lies, stammering out her excuses that fail to leave her lips. "I'm just... I..."
Avery
Avery winces slightly at the outburst. "I'm sorry. Then what are you?"
Snowy
"I... I do... I don't know..." She says. "I'm happy to be surviving and having my old life burned but... worried about being found."
Avery
Avery nods. "Emotions are hard. I'm getting better but they are hard. Worry and scared are similar."
Avery looks over Snowy. "You know there are Privateers around, yes? They can find you in trash cans or storage sheds if they want. They can't find you here. Here...you can hide among the crowd, keep your head down, and not be found. But out there...you stick out and are easy to find. There is a winter contract you should learn if that's something you insist on doing."
Snowy
"Here is gross... it feels... wrong. Like that place I was before..." She looks at her. Ever stubborn and determined to survive on her lonesome. "Which contract?"
Avery
Avery nods. "I refused the Hedge for months. It scared me, it is so strange and works on its own rules. But here, the Hollow, is safe. You can make your own hollow if you want."
Avery focuses on one part of their reality, shaped by said contract that they no longer use. "Ermine's Winter Coat. It takes inspiration from the Ermine, shedding its brown fur for white in the winter. They hide among the snow, like you hide among people. I cannot teach it, I am no longer of Winter."
Snowy
"...I called my old life safe too..." She says with a glare before hearing of this contract. "I'll look into it." She states.
Avery
"Then I suggest making your own hollow. You can..." Avery searches for the right words. "You can make your own trashcan that only you can get into."
Snowy
"I... think I have a place." Snowy says with a shrug. "But I just need to find it again."
Avery
"I made mine so that it follows me. I can call it from anywhere I need Ironside. Do you know how to influence the Hedge to make a hollow?"
Snowy
She shakes her head. "No, but if I can make shit out of the hedge then that would be mega useful!"
Avery
Avery smiles, looking at the fireplace, then back to their sketch. "Every person influences the Hedge differently. You can...take control of the Hedge in a way. Your time There gave you the connection, all you need to do is grasp it and convince it to change."
Avery takes a moment to continue drawing, and...the fireplace reacts. At first it grows, inviting in its warmth. Then...various colors start finding its way into the flames. The colors shift, giving a landscape in the shifting flames. A beautiful forest by a lake, shiny pebbles along its beach. Avery keeps it up for a bit, before erasing the paper and convincing the fire to go back to what it once was. And the Hedge obliges.
"It's easier for me, I am closer to the Wyrd. If you want help, I can help you make one."
Snowy
"Woah!" For once she sounds impressed, or amazed "How did you do that though?!"
Avery
"I took control of the Hedge. It responds if you push it." Avery says like it was breathing. For someone so close to the Wyrd, maybe it was.
"What is something you enjoy doing?"
Snowy
"Uh... stealing..." She begins to list them off on her fingers. "Sleeping, eating, hunting and other normal things."
Avery
Avery smiles. "Try to steal one of my knives. Reach into the Wyrd and convince the Hedge to hide your tracks. I will need my knife back after."
Um...they dont APPEAR to have any knives on them.
Snowy
"Uh... alright..." She closes her eyes and take a breath.
"Knifey stabby, come to the bitchy owly..." And just like that the knive shoots out of Avery's hip and flies on it's new wings towards snowy's hand. "WhAT THE FUCK?!" She blurts out.
Avery
Avery looks slightly shooketh at the emergence of wings (and probably Snowy's yell) from their trusted weapons, Avery's hand very quickly, faster than any human's could, reaches out and grabs the handle. After a quick flourish, the wings fold back into the knife, and Avery inspects their weapon for damages.
"Exactly like that. See?"
Snowy
"That was pretty fucking awesome!" She says looking at her talons on her fingers. "I have the power of a god..."
Avery
Avery was quick to shut that one down. "No, you do not. You have the power to shift the world around you, but it is not without consequence or danger. The Hedge reacts when you do this. If you are not careful, it may seek revenge. Something that small is very unlikely to cause problems, but larger things, especially within the Thorns, will. And remember...the Hedge is very much alive. It can do this too."
Snowy
"Yeah yeah I was kidding." She rolls her eyes. "But still, it's a cool power but how does this help me with my trash?"
Avery
"These were small shifts. With focus or help, you could turn a poisoned creek into a lush garden that you call home. For my home, I turned a cave into a home, hiding it from the outside world and making it safe instead of cold."
Snowy
"I see..." She beings to think on that some more. "I'll take a little trip to my hollow and do that then... or at least think of some ideas!"
Avery
"Yes, start small. You are disconnected from the Wyrd, so you cannot control as much. If you get closer to it, you can affect more. But that comes with its own drawbacks." Avery sits back down slowly.
Snowy
"And how close to this wyrd stuff are you?"
Avery
"Very. I still am...missing memories, but I am outside people's expectations. I have to be careful around people. There are those that are very close, like Vorpal."
Snowy
"What happens when you reach that level?" She asks with a blink.
Avery
"As you get closer to the Wyrd, you regain more memories of There. You eventually regain all of them, but it is significantly easier to find you by the presence you leave behind, and you have 5 personal frailties beyond Iron. You however, individually, are quite powerful. Vorpal is quite hard to hurt, much less kill. Your clarity suffers the closer you are to the Wyrd as well."
Snowy
"Jesus..." She says looking down. "No offence to you but I'm happy where I am now..."
Avery
"Many are. I felt like being closer to the Wyrd felt more like me. I...do not have many memories of Before. There are benefits and downsides, its up to you to find what balance fits you the best."
Snowy
"Understood..." She sighs. "I think I'll rest for now though. My coat is dry and I just worked out a good groove."
Avery
"May I sit here and draw? I will leave if you want me to."
Snowy
"Sure... draw me like one of your french girls if you want."
Avery
"I don't draw people."
Snowy
She raises an eyebrow. "Well... an owl then." She shrugs and lays down properly.
Avery
"You are still a person. I am drawing the fireplace as a reminder of my Wrath. Enjoy your nap."
Avery seemed to...pull back into the shadows slightly, making them even quieter.
Snowy
With that Snowy lays down on the coat and wraps herself up in her own wings to keep warm.
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