flying blind [open]

[Vivosaurus]

The sun had barely set beyond the sea, had only just been swallowed by the deep, unforgiving waters, before Horton pushed off from what he had learned was called Cape Glaux. He’d spent an uneasy, anxious sleep in a birch tree, before finally cracking his eyes open to see a graying sky. And so he eagerly jumped to the branch, picked up his wings, and whooshed into the air. He flapped powerfully until he felt his wings meet the seabreeze, and then Horton fell into wherever this wind would take him. He knew it could be awhile before he saw solid ground – but an owl doesn’t need ground, he reminded himself. All Horton needed was the air moving around his wings, and the stars and moon above to light his way. The legends said that the Island of Hoole could only be found by those true and strong of gizzard, and Horton hoped this meant that all he needed to navigate the sea was the stirring in his gizzard every time he heard the legends.

As he learned the ways the air moved over the Sea of Hoolemere, Horton began to loosen up and have more fun, trying out loops and twisting through the wind. He turned his wings and shifted his feathers, feeling the air currents – dipping down, rising up, turning about until he found the easiest route towards what he was certain must be the island. It was impossible to know for sure, but Horton was sure that he had found something like a path through the air, and where else would a path lead but to the Great Tree?

Just as he was growing comfortable with traveling across this body of water, the mist appeared. He’d, of course, heard of the veil it created, preventing just any owl from finding the Guardians’ fortress, but he’d never imagined what it would be like to fly through it. It was like flying blind. I might as well close my eyes, he thought to himself, flapping his wings so he could maneuver himself and slow down. Horton was trying to think, to figure out how he could get through to the island, but there was nothing to guide him. Not even in the legends. The air was speeding up, becoming more difficult to predicate and navigate – he could feel sudden gusts trying to blow him off course, and sneaky breezes blowing up from below. How was he supposed to know what to do?

And then Horton realized he just had to go on faith. He closed his eyes and swooped down, relying on his gizzuition to tell him when to shift his feathers and what currents of air to fly on. The only way to make it to the Great Tree was to listen to his gizzard. And he felt that he was close.

[Fin]

A small figure leapt from a small hole in the Great Tree, leading to the fabled library of the Guardian's. Though tiny in comparison to some owls, the little bird opened his wings wide and took flight, spiralling lazily. The last time this owl had stretched his wings was before the sun was at it's highest point in the sky, when most owls were out and about busying themselves with their work. Since first-light he had been deep in his studies, filling empty parchment with words, telling of the great New Era of the tree. The King has specifically asked the co-ryb to make sure that all records were to be checked, and if lacking, to be filled. A lengthy job - it wasn't hard for the little Southern White-faced Owl, as he was very knowledgeable of the subject, it just took time.

Soaring over the water's edge, he dipped ever so slightly deeper until he felt his talons touch the surface, skimming until he was bored before tilting upwards, racing up and away from the tree. He needed to clear his mind as the words jumbled up in his thoughts. His mouth felt dry as if he had been speaking to a huge audience for the whole time - which he was, metaphorically. A quiet flight, just by himself as the sun set.

The little owl glided, a flap of his short wings every so often, in a slow spiral around the island, enjoying the cold winds rushing through his feathers. Closing his eyes, he opened them again, noticing he had stopped circling the tree. One quick look over his shoulder confirmed that he was flying away, but for some reason his gizzard willed him on. It would do no harm, right? He was happy enough flying, the distant mist becoming thicker, but it was then he spotted a dark shadow of a figure flying.

Almost as if skidding to a halt in the air, he froze where he was, flapping his wings to keep himself in place. Gulping a little, the owl stared at the figure as it flew closer, before calling out: "Gunden vhagen!" Good evening! He called out, half hoping for a friendly reply. It was often he would forget which language he was speaking, and sometimes dipped into Krakish, often to the amusement of his Chawlets. Stuttering, he spoke again, "Are you searching for the Guardians?"

[Vivosaurus]

Though his eyes were closed, Horton was far from drifting off - flying through this mist took extreme focus, and he was concentrating every single part of his mind and gizzard into navigating the winds. But Horton was starting to get tired and wasn't sure if he could keep going. He just had to hope that the island wasn't far away. Or else... well, he wasn't sure what would happen. A number of things could happen to a tired, flying owl with no place to land. But his gizzard always had hope, and he just knew that something would guide him.

Or someone.

A sudden call caused Horton to snap open his eyes. What was that? It sounds... Krakish. He flipped his head around until he saw the owl hovering slightly above him. Through the fog, he could vaguely make out the shape of the small bird, and he too slowed his flight. "Gunden vhagen," he hooted back, as he was now pretty sure that this owl spoke Krakish - or could at least say the greeting with the correct pronunciation. And then when he heard the stranger's question, an eager excitement beamed from Horton's brown eyes and ruffled his feathers slightly. He shifted his tail feathers and flapped softly, letting the wind do most of the work of taking him to the other owl's side. And when he was close, Horton flapped his wings similarly, so he could stay next to the owl.

"Yes! I am," he exclaimed rather enthusiastically. "Are you a Guardian? What is your name? Am I close to the Great Tree? Were you just speaking Krakish?" he began to ask, the subtle Northern accent weaving through his words. The questions came tumbling out before he seemed to even realize it. He clacked his beak after the last question, as if he was done, but he seemed to be holding it in, like there were words building up pressure in his mouth. Finally, the rest of the questions fell out in a pile as quick as he could say them. "What kind of owl are you? Why do you have orange eyes?" There was a pause, as Horton seemed to be searching his brain for any more inquiries. And then he shut his beak with finality and waited for an answer.

[Fin]

A sigh of relief escaped Kall's beak as he realised that the owl was no threat, and instead, was quite the opposite. It was strange to his own ears to hear Krakish spoken, as few residents of the tree spoke it, but it was quite nice. Finally - an owl he could relate to! The bird got closer and that was when the avalanche of questions crashed down on the little owl. Opening his beak to speak, Kall was very surprised by the speed in which the younger owl could speak - such curiosity!

"Y-yes I am a guardian. My name is Kall. You're very close to the tree. Yes I speak krakish!" The little owl struggled to answer the questions as quickly as he asked, his words fumbling. It was exhausting talking to this bird! Hearing the reel of questions begin again, Kall fluffed up his chest feathers and flapped many times, itching to be moving. The cold weather would soon set into the small birds feathers much quicker than the larger owl, which was deadly out at sea. Ignoring his last few questions, Kall interuppted him: "If you wish to see the Great Tree, it's best if you see it before night falls, when we have some light!" He said, though impatient it was, he had good reason.

Turning around, he dived to increase his speed, looking over to make sure the other owl was following. Flapping his wings furiously to try and fly faster as not to embarress himself infront of the larger owl, he called out: "I didn't catch your name, frisen!"

_{(sorry it's short, am going to join celebrations in a second - feel free to describe them arriving at the tree and if you want, powerplay Kall a little as if he led him to a perch happy new year!)}

[Vivosaurus]

Horton stared with a fierce focus to his muddy brown eyes while his questions were answered - Kall the Guardian who spoke Krakish, and they were close to the tree! The young owl had to exercise extreme control to stop himself from trying to do a somersault through the air (which probably wouldn't end up very well - not in these weather conditions). This was it, he was finally going to see the magnificent tree, where all the legends of Hoole and the Strix Strikers and Grank and all that - it all came true. Or at least on a level closer to truth, and further away from merely bedtime story.

Then, rather than getting more answers, Horton got an impatient reasoning that they should go on flying to the Great Tree - though it was a little rude, Horton was very used to that in response to his questions. "Right! Let's go," he hooted, following Kall down into a dive. Horton flew behind but to the left of him (at his port side, he would have called it, if Horton had known what that was), he flapped his wings easily through the slipstream of air. "I'm Horton," he said - it was basically his name now, because it was frustrating to try to get Southern Kingdom owls to say Hyrrth'n, and so he was used to introducing himself like that.

Gradually, as they flew, the mist subsided, and he began to see the outline of an enormous tree. And pretty soon, it wasn't just an outline - it was the Great Tree of Ga'Hoole. If a gizzard can gasp, Horton's did, and his eyes widened as he saw the great tree in all its glory, with owls, the Guardians, flying about. He'd never seen a tree until he left the Northern Kingdoms, and so they were a particular curiosity of his, but this tree took the cake. He'd known it was big, but he never could have imagined this.

Kall led him to a side branch in the tree and landed. Horton held his legs out, turned his body upward, and flapped his wings to slow his flight. He gripped the branch with his talons, but was still flipping his head about and looking around. "Wow," he whispered.

(Happy New Year to you too! Sorry I didn't get this up last night - I got caught up in reading the Hunchback of Notre-Dame)

[Fin]

Though it was not an awful long time ago, Kall recalled the first time he set his eyes on the wonder that most owls call the Great Tree, but the little owl has always thought that 'Great' wasn't enough. Magnificant, awe-inspiring, divine? No, he couldn't muster it - only seeing it yourself would explain. As they drew closer to his home, and very soon to be 'Horton's' too. What a strange name for a young'un from the N'yrthghar... Kall decided it might offend the owl if he questioned it, so he quickly decided against it.

"Come on, you'll get the full tour later. Right now you have to meet the King." The White-faced Owl hooted nonchalantly over to the other owl, heading for the left hand side of the tree before flying in a sloping movement before finally lightning down expertly onto a branch. He hopped along it, not waiting for Horton. It would be a miracle if they caught the King before he turned in few a few hours sleep. Many owls of the tree were nocturnal, but some species were more suited to daylight, as the Great-horned was. It was well known that their leader didn't have as much sleep as everyone else as his duties demanded his attention.

Swivelling his head quickly to speak to the Barred Owl, he said: "Come now, it's just up here." Kall hopped up onto a thick branch and awkwardly waddled, as he usually walked. He passed a wide, circular opening which radiated warmth, a tell-tale sign of many owls inside. "That's the Trainee's hollow, you'll be in there soon enough." Kall said, stopping to talk to Horton before flying up again, onto a thinner branch, and then again until there were no more branches to climb. Ducking his head and clicking his beak, Kall hopped along the branch once or twice, turning to wait for the younger owl to join him.

"We're here. Uhm, Your Majesty?" Kall hooted out loudly, leaning towards the hollow that glowed amber. Candles burned inside, now needed as the sun had set. "It is Kallryb, of Ga'hoology? I have found a young owl out in the mist. He wasn't far from the tree." He said hopefully, head twitching and his little ear tufts raised.

(I'll reply with Arctus's post after this, unless you feel you can make something out of this post xD I'll reply tomorrow if thats okay - it's late here!)

[Fin]

In his spacious hollow, all of the candles that surrounded the room had been lit with a small peice of wood from his ever-burning fire. Unlike his name implied, Arctus was an owl who enjoyed being very warm, becoming accostomed to it over many years of being a colliering. It was quite comforting to him, whilst others found it uncomfortable. He was perched at his 'desk', his ash-covered talons holding a quill lightly as he dabbed it in a pot of ink. A blank parchement lay bare on the wood, but as he dabbed onto the page a few Hoolian words, it slowly filled up. Hearing a noise outside of his hollow, one of Arctus's ear-tufts pricked. Kall? What was he doing here, at this time?

"Come in." He said, with divided attention to his work as he finished the sentence. "Hello there my friend," He gestured to Kall as he lighted-down by the two owls, folding his wings as he spoke. "And who's this? I say lad, what's your name?" He hooted with a friendly-tone deep in his voice. The King's eyes widened as he began to circle the Barred Owl, Kall sidestepping out of his way courteously. The tall owl inspected Horton, taking slow strides as he did. "Shaking his head, he called out to his nestmaid Rose.

"Dear Rose, would you prepare some tea, and perhaps some Nootie cakes? I'm sure this fellow is hungry." Arctus hooted out, and a long snake slithered out, around the three owls and settling beside the King.

"Ooh, he's a strong one. He'll fit right in with the other trainees." She hissed, flicking her tongue at the end before leaving to get the tea and cakes.

Kall spoke, twitching his head to the left as he did, "Your Majesty, what hollow will he be designated? Shall I call for one of his hollow-mates to give him a tour?"

Arctus shook his head, "Please, less of the formalities - you make me sound like a king. I was thinking the Coryn hollow - if I recall, it is young Tobias, Windsail and Lupinus? Some fine young owls there." Arctus said thoughtfully as Kall nodded. After a pause, the Monarch said "Send for Lupinus. He will give our new friend a tour of his new home."

The little White-face owl responded with a friendly hoot and sped off through the hollow entrance, flapping his wings wildly. The Great-horned chuckled as he left: "Never will be a graceful flyer, but such a genius. His mind is worth a thousand wings - ah, the tea! Thank you Rose." The tall owl thanked the nestmaid as she brought a tray holding two cups, a pot of milkberry tea and a small selection of nootie cakes. The bigger owl gestured to the cakes with his wing as he picked up the pot of tea and poured an equal amount into both cups, placing it back onto the tray before taking a sip of his own.

"Now tell me, what is your circumstances, lad?" Arctus said after a while, holding his cup up and after speaking he sipped out of it again.

[Vivosaurus]

The King? Horton didn't think he would be meeting the king so soon, but then again he'd heard that such titles of royalty weren't as important at Ga'Hoole - the Guardians were all equal, and even Hoole himself had refused to wear a crown. He followed Kall up through a series of branches, before alighting on a branch and waiting outside the hollow as Kall peered in. Even from outside the hollow, the warmth radiated, and he shuffled somewhat in discomfort at the fire. Horton's experience with fire was very limited, especially as he was from such an icy place, but even as he was a little uncomfortable, he was also somewhat entranced by the candles.

Horton followed Kall inside, his eyes wide slightly with not necessarily shyness, but awe. For once, he had been driven into silence - there were too many questions, too much to stare and wonder at, for him to all get it out. With all of that inside his head, it was near impossible for Horton to simply get out his name, but he finally manage to stutter, "Horton." He shuffled his feet and wings uncomfortably as the king circled him and inspected him, but his face seemed to brighten a bit at the thought of food. Horton hadn't eaten well in a couple of nights.

A snake! Horton had met a couple nestmaid snakes in his travels, but it still caught him off guard every time, and he couldn't help but take a slight step backwards as she hissed and flicked her tongue and slithered away.

Kall and Arcust seemed to be talking about where he would be staying, and Horton seemed somewhat surprised that there were already so sure he would be staying. And that they were already calling him friend. Perhaps Horton had assumed that it would take longer to be accepted - the Guardians seemed like such an elite, unattainable organization, but here he was, a young, uneducated owl, and they seemed happy to have him.

The snake appeared again with tea and nootie cakes, but Horton seemed hesitant to take any of it. "What are nootie cakes? And milkberry tea? And... milkberries?" he asked, for these were questions that were much easier to ask than the numerous other ones about Ga'Hoole and these owls swimming in his head. He didn't ask out of disgust - rather, he wanted to know. In fact, before the king could answer any of it, he took one of the cakes and it disappeared past his beak quickly. He was definitely very hungry.

"Circumstances?" he asked, not quite understanding. It was a combination of not being sure of what the Hoolian word meant, and in what way it was being used.

[Fin]

Taking a long sip of his drink, Arctus placed the cup back onto Rose's tray, keeping his eyes on Horton the whole time. It seems we have another Krakish-speaking owl under our wing he thought to himself.

"Well - why are you here? Your life, your travels! Please, enlighten me! I love a good story, so does Rose." The nestmaid nodded slightly, as not to tilt the tray. Clearing his throat, Arctus rose, opening his right wing wide to alliterate his point, "All owls have a story, a lovers poem or a great novel, from their smallest acheivments to their most remarkable adventures." As he hooted, he walked to the wall and then along it, his wing pointing to the magnificant peices of art that displayed battles, or portraits of famous owls. Lyze of Kiel, Soren of Tyto, the Battle of the Ice Claws, all well known owls or events. Beneath them all were short inscriptions describing their reasons for being so well known, be it a master strategist or a long, gruesome battle.

Rejoining the Barred owl, he settled again, taking a nootie cake and pecking at it once with his beak, amber eyes set on the owl expectantly. Though the younger owl may not of noticed, all the while Arctus was calculating - calculating where this owl would go, what chaw was was placed into, most importantly, but also where he would find his place in the tree. So many times had the king been in this kind of situation - a young owl finding the tree for the first time, an uncertainty in their eyes but also hope.

"Tell you what, laddy, if you tell me where you came from and how you got here, I'll answer alllll the questions you can ask." Arctus said with a wink, noticing the owl was a little more inquisitive than some others.

[Vivosaurus]

Horton stared at the art - he recognized some of it from recent stories, but others stood out strongly in his mind from early memory. The Battle of the Ice Claws and Lyze of Kiel. His gizzard stirred. Not an owlet was born in the Northern Kingdoms that didn't hear about his famous bravery. He may not have heard of any of the legends of Ga'Hoole when he was an owlet, but he'd certainly heard of Lyze. It was hard for Horton to think of the stories of his great battles, and then think of the story of his own life. There was no comparison, in his mind.

But if all of his questions would be answered... Well, Horton's dark eyes lit up at that prospect, and he nodded, trying to think of where to start. "I was born near Kiel Bay - south of it, I think. My parents... they went missing one day. Well, my mum went missing first, and then my da, he went looking for her, and he didn't come back." It was not an easy subject to talk about, but many families that Horton had encountered asked him about this, and so he had grown used to telling this story. But that didn't mean there wasn't a feeling of a hole in his gizzard at the thought. "I tried to fly before I was ready. I think I told my brother I was going to find them," he explained. There were many tales of owlets doing that - he wasn't the first, and he certainly wasnt' the last. "And I ended up in the Ice Narrows, with a family of puffins. They showed me the different kinds of winds and, with their help, I figured out how to fly and get out of the Ice Narrows. But when I went back home... There was no one there. I decided to go to the Southern Kingdoms." That was a difficult decision, but Horton's parents had always told him about the dangers in N'yrthghar - the kraals, the war, the polar bears. The Southern Kingdoms, they'd always told him, were a place of warmth and safety. He'd always wondered why they didn't live there.

"I lived with a lot of different families - Elf Owls, Burrowing Owls, Great Greys. I lived in all the different kingdoms. They taught me Hoolian, helped me learn how to hunt and fly better. And I heard the legends of Ga'Hoole from all of them when they told them to their owlets. I want to learn everything, and I realized that this would be the place to do that. So, I decided to cross the Sea of Hoolemere and find it for myself." He shuffled slightly at the end of his story and ruffled his feathers at the thought that he had just told his life over again. He'd never really looked at his lifetime in its entirety, and it was odd to think about.

[Fin]

Clicking his beak at the end of Horton's story, Arctus raised to his full height again. With a flick of his wing, he sent Rose away, thanking the snake as he did.

"Hmm... then it is settled." He hooted, slowly and thoughtfully, "I offer you a place to live within our humble tree, in hollow Coryn, serving my own chaw, Colliering, and Elhanaryb's, Weather-interpretation. Do you choose to accept this life?" Arctus said, knowing full-well what the answer would be. Waiting for Horton's reply, Arctus was about to inform the younger owl of the rules they followed at the tree, but was interrupted by a loud thump as an owl landed heavily on the branch outside. A few curses were audiable accompanied by the sound of ruffling feathers as the owl tried to make himself look presentable.

"I was going to tell you everything important, but I think your guide is here. I'm sure he will inform you." Arctus said, looking over to the entrance with a bemused look on his features. A call sounded outside, asking for permission to be let in, which was granted by the King.

"Come in!"

Oh Ga I'm late, I'm late! Okay Kall came to me ages ago, but I was still hungry - oh why was I still hungry! Lupinus thought to himself as he thrashed his way out of the Dining Hollow, realising that he had taken quite a while, constantly apologising to owls as he bumped into them. Just as he was about to plunge out of the outside-exit to the hollow he was called by two pretty owls. He said a quick hello to them before flying away hastily, heading straight for the highest hollow. He had never been to the King's hollow before - how exciting!

In the most ungraceful landing possible, the Eurasian Eagle-owl cursed heavily as he practically fell onto the branch, hearing the two owls talking inside. Righting himself, he held out his wings as he tried to smooth his now-ruffled chest feathers to make himself look less dishevelled. He hooted into the entrance, waiting to be told to come in.

When he heard King Arctus welcome him in, he stumbled inside, folding his wings and lowering his head when he looked around, awe-struck by the room. So many things - paintings, scriptures, everything! It was a stark difference to his own hollow, but then he knew that this was the King's hollow.

"H-hello there. I'm Lupinus, but you can call me Lupin." The words stumbled out as his attention was elsewhere. He shook his head and then noticed the strange owl sitting there. He looked about the same age, so it must be the owl he was sent to show around the tree. "You must be Horton." Lupin said with a smile, stepping into the hollow.

[Vivosaurus]

Do you choose to accept this life? Horton ruffled his feathers in awe of the word choice. Why wouldn't he accept that life? Who in their right minds wouldn't? The Guardians meant protection, education, friendship... a home. Everything he'd ever wanted. The question was merely a formality, really - Horton nodded enthusiastically, hopping from foot to foot. He was about to ask what exactly colliering was, when a thump from outside interrupted his train of thought and he swiveled his head with a quizzical tilt in the general direction. He was, admittedly, a little disappointed at the interruption, but all the same eager to meet other owls and learn even more about the Great Tree. Horton watched the eagle-owl enter, and shrank just a little bit at his size, before raising to his full height and stepping eagerly forward in greeting. "Yes, I am," he said, looking up at the other owl with those dark, deep-searching eyes that always abounded with questions. "What kind of owl are you? What... chaw are you in?" The words came tumbling out before he could stop them - they were second nature now, like clacking one's beak or ruffling one's feathers. He couldn't help it.

[Fin]

Hearing the owl's response, Lupin rose up, hooting "Welcome aboard!" He didn't seem to be a bad bird - infact, he might even become one of Lupin's friends! It was a big tree filled with older owls who had little time for gleeking about, or were just too darn serious. Snapping back to reality, he looked down at Horton who had stepped closer with his large eyes. It was a little intimidating, but he was sure he would get over it. Besides - he'd seen loads of owls before with eyes like his, right? I mean, you couldn't get any more diverse here!

The assault of questions caught Lupin offguard as he looked to Arctus for support, who simply nodded his head in a way that said 'and now you leave'. Or was it 'now he's your problem'? Lupin didn't know, but he shrank back a little toward the door.

"I'll... I'll tell you on the way." He promised the owl, before turning to head for the exit. Stepping out, he twitched his head a couple of times, walking sideways as he leaned down. Looking down at the slowly darkening tree, it was one of the best views he'd ever had. Every now and then, a new lamp would be lit somewhere in the tree, the amber light shining. It was beautiful. He almost forgot what he was there for as he stood with a dreamy look on his features.

"It's so... It's like... It's like we can the tree's heart, glowing bright in the dark, like a beacon of light." He paused, lifting his head up as he straightened himself on the branch, "We've got dark times ahead of us, and I don't think we'll all pull through, but the tree always will. Ain't that right." He hooted, patting the thick branch at the end with his wing. It was a fact that all Guardian owls believed that the tree was living - which it was - and demanded respect as it was only allowing them to live there. Twitching his ear tufts, he turned to Horton, saying "Come on!"

Diving sideways without opening his wings, Lupinus plunged down into the night, opening his wings wide and catching the wind. He swooped at a great speed, spiraling around the tree until he passed under the branch he was sitting on before. Not looking to see if Horton wa sbehind him, he hooted loudly over the wind.

"This is the ryb's hollow - they're our teachers. They all have their own personal hollow to study in. And here is the co-ryb's hollows, they all share, but its still nice." Tilting his wings, he lowered in altitude, sweeping past a wide entrance, "That's the Guardian's hollow, and coming up is our own." As they went past the smaller entrance, Lupin hooted a promise to take him there later.

Diving once again, Lupin curved, getting closer to the trees massive trunk as he did. After a few seconds, the Eagle-owl flapped his wings a few times to slow his speed, head turned to a large entrance. "The Great Hollow. Meetings are held in here by council, announcements are made and it is a great spot to meet up with everyone." He didn't stop there, instead the eagle owl sharply-banked around the tree, coming to another big entrance, though it was a little smaller. It was the dining hollow, as Lupin explained.

After that, he continuied to show the newcomer everywhere in the tree - the entrance to Parliament, the Library, the Infirmary, and the food stores. After the long flight, Lupin led the way to a perch above the forgery, hoping he had done a good job.

"Colliering is the art of collecting coals from forest fires and other areas. They have to be collected by trained owls who are capable of withstanding the most testing of situations. I'm not in that chaw, but it's famous for being one of the most elite. Second to Search-and-rescue and Battle, of course! Come on, I'll show you." He flew down to where a plume of smoke rose from a entrance in the ground, a great heat escaping. He lighted down nearby and walked over, ducking his head as he walked in. Looking around, he noticed the smith wasn't in and he was very disappointed.

"Never mind, you can still put your head inside and have a look. You'll get used to the heat soon - a owl from the Northern Kingdoms in colliering, man thats unlucky." Lupin chuckled to himself.

[Vivosaurus]

Horton didn't pick up on the hesitation or aversion to the questions, and instead followed Lupin out of the hollow readily, watching and waiting to take off. He too looked out at the tree as they stood on the branch outside the hollow, and Horton sighed a dreamy sigh at the magic of the Great Tree. He still couldn't quite believe he was there, on the Island of Hoole. Beacon of light... It was the perfect way to describe the tree. One could describe it as a physical beacon of light, of course, within the mist of the Sea of Hoolemere, but it was more than that. It was a beacon of light in the gizzards of owls everywhere - even those that didn't believe the legends could look towards the stories with hope. Within the ominous threat of the Remnants, it was the only true safe haven.

Horton didn't have to be told twice. He swooped after Lupin, following closely behind his tour guide. Even though he was eager to see the rest of the tree, Horton seemed to be paying the most attention to the winds around it - he was learning how to navigate his new home.

The rybs' hollows, the co-rybs' hollows, the Guardians' hollows (where he would, hopefully, one day make his home), they passed them all, and then came upon theirs. Horton took as quick a look inside as he could while he was flying, before following Lupin on. It seemed like the tree was never-ending - it was so giant, and it was as if it was still growing, still accommodating all the new arrivals. It was such a magnificent tree.

The whole journey was too quick to allow Horton much question-asking, but they were certainly building up inside of him. They eventually ended up at a smaller hollow, lower down in the tree, and Horton could see smoke and feel heat emanating from it. He listened to the explanation and then followed Lupin to the ground, landing gracefully next to him. Horton drew his wings in and walked cautiously towards it. The idea of so much heat in one spot was still foreign to him - he'd never seen a true fire. He carefully put his head in and stared in awe at the tools all around, but mostly at the coals within. Horton could feel the heat and the movement of air around it. He tried to imagine a fire like that but times a thousand - it was near impossible for him, but he could see that it would affect the wind patterns, and would take expert flying. He was certainly eager to learn how to fly through a forest fire.

"No, I don't think it is so unlucky," he said as he backed out of the forgery and shook his wings a bit, as if to brush the heat off. "What is the forgery for? Why do we collect the coals?" It was all so new to him.

[Fin]

The Eagle-owl watched Horton explore the foreign element. It was clear that this bird hadn't even seen a forest fire, let alone colliers working. Shaking his head, he hopped along the ground a little, onto the rise of the entrance and looked down on Horton. The heat that escaped from the forgery lifted his chest feathers and an amber glow created an orange hue on his body.

"Arctus must have had a good reason for placing you in your chaw, but I can't think what." He hooted, shaking his head, "I have no idea. Maybe he sees talent." Lupin couldn't fathom why this owl, so unaware of fire and from one of the coldest places in the world they live in, was chosen for that chaw. Only time would tell.

"When you picture a great Guardian, soaring through the air, he's always got a pair of glinting battle claws and a majestic helmet on, right? Well, this is where they're made. Of course, the Monarchs have more detailed regalia, but we all get armoured up when we become full-guardians. They protect us from harm, and let us deal lethal damage. Other owls steal them from us, like the Remnants, when they take them off dead owls or even take them from us when we are fighting." He paused, hopping down next to Horton. "To make them, he needs coals, and thats what Colliers fetch from forest fires. I don't really know all the details... but I'm sure in class you learn. Which reminds me - we must go and introduce you to your Weather Interpretation ryb!"

Without waiting for his newly-found friend to follow, Lupinus took off into the air, flapping his wings over and over again to pick up speed. Tilting to starboard, he curved around the tree, his incline slowly rising until they were headed straight for the Ryb hollows. Lighting down in the entrance, Lupin hurridly hopped down the little hallway between the hollow, passing a few holes on the way. Stopping outside of one, he clicked his beak for Horton to follow before hooting a greeting inside of the entrance.

Turning to face Horton whilst they waited, he outstretched his wings, patting down some of the feathers on the smaller owls head. "Straighten up, this is your other teacher, and I know you like asking questions but please, for the sake of all owls at this tree, do not mention her height."