FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

A cold breeze rolled over the mountains as the sun stood high in the sky. Cyrvanyx relaxed on the top of one of the highest mountains that surrounded the clan. From there he had a full view of the lands to the south that went on very far. Mountains became hills and hills became vast plains that stretched further than he could see.

Trees filled the horizon in the places where the mountains were smaller and fewer in numbers. His field of vision reached all the way to the end of the highlands from where it was not far to a big Albien City. A river ran through the landscape, running in between the mountains and hills like an enormous serpent. He knew that that river flowed into another, much wider channel that connected the northern sea with the southern sea.

He only had to follow that river and then follow the channel if he wanted to reach Henry´s old homestead. He has never been there, but Henry told him how easy it was to find the castle if you just follow the water. He played with the idea to tell Henry´s family about his death before, but they probably already knew anyway.

Cyrvanyx gazed into the distance, a smile forming on his muzzle as he relished the sight and the feeling of the wind washing over him. It was rather cold, but he still enjoyed it in a way. He had missed this place a lot. In his youth he would always come to this mountain to have some time for himself and think. And he certainly had a lot of things to think about. The war, the meeting he was planning with the highclaws, William and also Arylaryl.

He sighed as an image of her crossed his mind. His feeling for her were still confusing him. He knew that he had deeper feeling for her than friendship. More than once had he dreamt about him mating with her, only to wake up with an unpleasant surprise between his hind legs. And yet he did not know if it was really love he felt for her or just desired to mate with her because of her beauty.

He flopped his head down on his fore paws as he laid on his side, his wings held close to his body and his tail curled around himself as he shifted around to make himself more comfortable. He sighed once again looking at the vast landscape underneath him. "Ary..." He whispered to himself. "What are you doing with my mind?"

As he was too busy gazing at the horizon he almost did not hear the sound of flapping wings that came towards him. He lazily turned his head around, his eyes only half lid. But when he saw who was flying towards him his eyes went wide immediately. He expected Arylaryl to visit her family or something, but instead she chose to search for him. But why?

His eyes followed her as she landed not far away from him. She folded her wings close to her body and began to make her way towards him. When their gazes locked she smiled at him, causing him to look away. He could not even meet her gaze.

"How are you, Cyr?" She asked him with a surprising amount of happiness in her voice. "Síona told me you always come here to think. What are you thinking about?"

Cyrvanyx looked her into her eyes for a few seconds before he actually responded. "Eh, well... I´m thinking about all the things that happened and all the things that will happen." He looked at his paws. "And why do you sound so happy all of a sudden?"

"Oh, because Síona told me that Gareth will be fine and that his life is not at risk." She said, a warm smile spreading across her muzzle. Ary stepped up to his side, tilting her head as she pointed at the ground. "May I?"

He frowned at her in confusion before he realized that she asked him if she could lay down next to him. "Err... yes... yes, sure." He lifted his wing slightly as she settled down next to him. Even he could hear the nervousness in his voice, so surely she heard it too. He drew a circle in the ground with a claw as a distraction, but it did not really work. "So..." He gulped down his nervousness, or at least tried. "I thought you would... maybe... visit your family? Your father and mother?"

She quirked her brow and looked at him like he just made a very bad joke. "Cyr, my parents have been gone since I joined the order." She chuckled, shaking her head. "I haven´t heard of them in a while."

"Oh, right." He said with a smile while mentally punching himself for forgetting something like that. "Doesn´t that... worry you at all?" He regretted that question the moment it rolled of his tongue.

"Well, a little." Her gaze wandered towards the horizon. "But it didn´t use me anything to worry about Gareth, right?" Her warm smile returned as she looked at him. "So why waste my time to worry about them. It won´t change anything."

"Mhm, glad you realized that too." He too then glared at the landscape. The bare tress that stood in the distance reminded him that winter was on its way. He hoped only the best for the people of Albia in the oncoming battles. It would be hard for Ulric´s forces to march once the land was covered in snow.

"This looks beautiful." He heard Ary say as she gazed at the distant trees and mountains. "I think I understand now why you used to come here all the time." She rested her head down on the ground, sighing. "This place has a very calming atmosphere." She turned her head, looking up at him. "Don´t you think so?"

Cyrvanyx just smiled at her and nodded. Calm was not the word he would choose to describe how he felt at the moment. And yet she was right. The place normally had an overall calming atmosphere, especially in the winter, when the snow was falling quietly. Though while Arylaryl was there with him it was hard to relax, although his nervousness was slowly dwindling.

He took a deep breath, closing his eyes as he set his head down onto his front paws. Instead of focusing on the worries inside his head he focused on the sound and feel of the wind as it washed over him like a waves, making his wing membranes tingle. He let out the breath he was holding in and opened his eyes again, looking at the horizon. Despite his worries and his confusing feelings for Ary he still managed to relax.

"Yes, Ary." He turned his head towards her, smiling. "Very calming indeed, as well as beautiful." In that moment there was a part of him that wanted to say ´just as beautiful as you` to her, but he could not find the courage to say it out aloud. Instead he looked away and sighed, his tail swishing back and forth behind him.

He began to get nervous again as he thought about saying that to her. What would her reaction be? He could not help but get lost in his thoughts as his unfocused eyes gazed into the distance. "Cyrvanyx?" His ears perked up and he turned his head towards Ary as he heard her say his name.

"Mhm? What is it?" He asked her, trying to hide his nervousness as best as possible.

"I just wanted to thank you." She put on a warm smile, warm enough to forget the icy wind that surrounded them. "I think without you I wouldn´t have kept sane over the few days we traveled here. My fear for Gareth made me forget any common sense, so I thank you for... saving me from myself."

He stared at her, looking her into her blue eyes as she smiled at him. He had no idea what he should say as a response to those words. He was so shocked and happy at the same time. He wanted to smile, but he was too taken over by her words.

His eyes went wide and he sucked in a breath when she snuggled up against his side. "What is it?" She giggled at his reaction. "Are you not comfortable cuddling with me? We don´t have to be mates to do that."

"Y-yes I know and I don´t mind... cuddling with you." He forced a smile on his muzzle, looking into her eyes. "We have to keep ourselves warm after all."

She smiled back at him, resting her head on the ground next to his. She followed his gaze as he once again stared at the horizon. "You keep staring at the river and the distant grasslands, why?" Ary asked him curiously.

"I´ve been thinking about flying to Henry´s home, a castle that is built somewhere near the river, or channel." He sighed as he thought about Henry and the day he died. He wished that he could have saved him somehow. At least he was able to bring his son to safety, even though he failed to save his wife. He knew that Henry would be happy for what he has done.

"They probably know about the fall of the order already, Cyr." A bit of concern filled her soft and calming voice. "And before you even think about bringing William there let me tell you that he is better of here, where he is far away from the war."

"Yes, I know. That thought only crossed my mind once, but I quickly realized that it would be too dangerous for him." At this point his nervousness was gone, Although his heart still beat a little faster than it usually did.

"Good." She sighed, looking at him while he kept staring into the distance. "So is the chief of the humans going to arrange you a meeting with the highclaws?"

"Hm?" He turned his head towards her, confused at first, but then he remembered that he already told her about planning to meet them on their way to the clan. "Ah, yes. If everything goes to plan he will gather the highclaws and then I will talk to them."

"Do you think that you can actually pursue them?"

"I have to try at the very least."

"I guess you're right." She shrugged her wings, shifting a little closer to him. "But I think there is another way to gather the clans to fight for Albia." She stretched her neck to whisper it to him like she was about to tell some sort of secret. "You could meet the great Elder."

Cyrvanyx drew his head back, frowning at her. The great Elder. He was well aware who that was, and yet he never saw him in all his life. Even his existence is almost nothing but a myth. Cyr´s father told him how he once saw the great Elder emerging from the greatest mountain in the vale. He told him that he was enormous, bigger than a dragon could actually become, far bigger.

But still the great Elder is said to watch over them at any time and only show himself in the moments of greatest need. Maybe the situation they were was that moment? Maybe Arylaryl´s idea was not as bad as he thought. "And how would I meet with him?" He raised his brow, waiting for an answer he knew she did not have.

"Well... I don´t know..." She tapped a single unsheathed claw against the stone ground as she was busy thinking. She licked her nose, her narrowed eyes glaring at the ground. "Errm... well my... my father used to say-"

"Tell me when you have a genuine answer, alright?" He said with a grin on his face as he laid his head down on his fore paws, closing his eyes.

"Hey!" She playfully swatted his side with her tail. "I was just about to give you a genuine answer." She cleared her throat. "So... my father told me once that the highclaws are said to have contact with the Great Elder in some way. If you fail to pursue the highclaws, you can ask about this."

"I will think about this." He said with a smile on his face. He doubted that the chances of that actually being true were very high, but it was still worth a try. If they were to grant him an audience with the Great Elder he could talk to him about the war. Surely someone who was accused of great wisdom should know how important it was to help out the men who were left to fight without their king and the order.

There was silence between the two of them for a while. Only the cold wind could be heard, its ghostly shrieking forcing him to pin his ears against his head as the wind got stronger. It was starting to get a bit too cold for his tastes. Ary though has gotten the worst of the cold, since the wind that would normally hit Cyrvanyx was instead hitting her. When he watched her body shaking a bit in the cold he unfolded his wing and gently put it over Ary´s shaking form to protect her from the icy winds.

"Thank you." Only when she looked at him with a smile did he even realize what he had just done. He was normally was so nervous around her, and yet without a second thought he shielded her with his wing. A bit of pride filled him when he realized that he has gotten past his fears.

She rested her neck against his, closing her eyes as she relished his warmth. "I´m glad to have you as a friend."

As she said those words something felt wrong. Those words were meant to comfort him, to make him feel appreciated. But he did not smile, nor was he happy that she said that, even though he knew he should. He did not know why he felt that way, but he did anyway.

His eyes stared into the distance, watching the trees bent underneath the power of the wind. There was a strange feeling in his stomach as he thought about what she had just said. She had called him a friend. That was great, or at least he thought it would be. Was that not what he wanted all along? To have her as a friend again? So why was he not happy?

He licked his nose, a shiver running down his back as another cold breeze washed over them, making his wing tingle from the cold especially. Due to her warmth on his neck and his side it was even harder to think about anything else but her. Her friendship was what he wanted. That was what he told Henry. But at the same time he knew that those dreams he had about her suggested that there was more to it.

Cyrvanyx closed his eyes as a sigh unintentionally escaped his throat. The way his heart beat faster when she was around him, how it was harder for him to form a sentence when she was touching him, it all suggested the same thing.

Ancestors, how could he have been so blind?

He really did love her.