Enlightenment to Gravity [Open]

[Skyler]

She could not believe her eyes. She was so small compared to it....it was like nothing she had seen. So vast....so never ending. Her brown eyes gazed over the edge of the cliff and on toward the horizon. The ocean. It was enormous. The young female felt miniscule. The hybrid edged closer to the sheer drop off. She glanced away from the ocean and down toward the jagged rocks that broke it. If she were to fall, it would surely end her.

The noise was like nothing she could have imagined. She had heard the wind moving through a cave, hollow and wailing. Over the valley, soft and sweet. But the wind here...the roar of the waves. It was deafening, yet soothing all the same. The scent of salt water bombarded her senses. The cael in her yearned to jump into the water and swim away from everything. The keiyou in her wanted to spread it's wings and soar over the breaking waves. But the Skyler in her, knew neither was possible.

She opened her leathery wings carefully, she felt the wind fill the right one, the whole one. Her left one, even outstretched was crumbled and deformed, it just moved in the wind like a tree in the forest. She shifted her weight back to her thick, reptilian tail just enough to lift her webbed forepaws slightly off the ground. Her sad brown eyes watched the seagulls and frigate birds float effortlessly on the billows of air. She would never be able to fly.

She looked down into the ocean, seeing strange fish as large as her leaping from crest to crest. She would never be a strong enough swimmer to attempt that. Her pale fur ruffled slightly in the sea breeze. The brown and pink spots seemed to move over her muscles like ripples, her few scales shimmered in the sun with the movement. She was a hybrid....a deformed hybrid to boot. But she wanted to learn everything she could, do things she could, even if they were limited.

She had been wandering for a while now, getting away from her pack to do some personal growth. There was too much going on back home, she felt in the way more than ever. At least fall was a time of plenty. She figured she would head back when the first frost hit, so she would not be stranded out in the winter alone and packless. Even if she was the lowest ranked member of her pack, they still took care of her when necessary.

Her ears flattened at that thought. She didn't want to have others provide for her, she had been on her own practically since she was weaned. Yet she was still in her birth pack. She was not the most social, but she at least had a few friends there to keep her safe when needed. But staying in the Valley would not teach her the ways of the world. She needed a pilgrimage or two to keep her studies going.

One such journey lead her here, to a marvelously breathtaking expanse of water. Here she could learn of sea birds and shore lines. Creatures of the deep water and weather patterns. The possibilities seemed as limitless as the view. It gave her a sense of elation that she hardly felt back at home. Yes she would linger here to learn all she could.

But for the moment, she just wanted to watch the waves and listen to the sounds all around her......

[Brightness Darkly]

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[atrb=background,http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q21/winkatuck/gdgvnvbnvcopy.png] The wind buffeted his face and ruffled Brightness' feathers as if trying to pull him into the air. The large golden brown hybrid resisted, for surely this far up he would plummet to his death. He looked out over the cliffs as he made his way, large paws making more noise than he would have liked, to see the sun glittering on the water. Bright and reflective, the ocean resembled glass. That is until the waves broke the allusion. The sight was beautiful, but Brightness understood why Kaly feared it. He'd swam before and if not for the help of a Cael friend he was sure he would have sunk. The way it tried to tug a wolf under. Pull them from land then thrust them back toward the rocks. The ocean was a deadly beauty indeed. Maybe that's why Bri liked it. The wind, the water, the sand he liked them all. Though the breeze coming off the coast was chilly and made sleeping difficult. It was a yawn that had Brightness catch the scent. It was another wolf for sure, but she smelled familiar, like Kaly did. Like the Children. On the expanse of the cliffs it wasn't long before he spotted the other. He vaguely remembered seeing her at the one pack meeting he had attended. Though he didn't know her name he was sure she belonged to the pack that had taken him in. Her wings spread, she looked like she was going to jump. And if she was doing what Brightness thought she might be doing then she surely wouldn't survive, not with that deformed wing. Brightness picked up his pace, getting close enough to catch the female's attention. "Excuse me," he said breathlessly, running and panic making his asthma act up," Y-your from the Children right?"

[Skyler]

She felt the breeze on her face, if she closed her eyes and lifted up a little more, resting on her thick tail and hind paws, it was almost like she was flying. It would probably be the closest she ever came to flight in her life...and ever would. The thought was a little depressing. Her crumpled wing would not allow her to ever have that freedom.

She did allow her vivid imagination to take flight as she began imagining what it would be like It almost brought tears to her eyes, she was so frustrated with her grounded state. If she had been a cael fully, she would not care this much about flight. She wouldn't have the need for flight....but the keiyou in her...her father in her, always mocked her in this respect.

She lowered her paws back to the ground and began folding in her wings. Her ears flickered as she heard a voice behind her. Quickly she came out of her day dream and turned quickly to face the potential threat. At first she balked. She immediately recognized him as a hybrid. His size and shape....the same hybrid s Yueh. There was a momentary pang in her heart at the thought. She had to blink away the thought. His question finally registered.

"Yes......" Was all she could manage as she riddled it together. She knew this male. He was at the last meeting, as well as deemed a 'temporary member'. A refuge from the Mafia. She wasn't sure what to do about it. Was she supposed to fear him? Submit to him? Ask him why he was here? She seemed to run into more pack members the further she got away from the pack. Why was that? She had wandered off to get away from them....to try to be her own self. Slowly she was realizing that her fate would forever be intertwined with the Children.....whether she liked it or not.

She glanced over her shoulder at the cliff edge. She had heard bad things about the Mafia. Would he have been sent as a spy to kill Children members? Her mind wanted to know so much, but her trust issues and social awkwardness were no assets here.