shatterverse | (no subject)

Entry tags:

howling wolf,
sky

(no subject)

The common* adage "air spirits are everywhere" is not, technically, true. They can potentially see anything the air can see, and potentially inhabit any zephyr, gust, or breeze, but potential is not reality and it's generally safe to assume you're too boring to spy on in any case.

Which doesn't mean they're not inclined to try.

Sky, at the moment, is making circuits of North America looking for a quick lunch. Campfire and burning-building smoke are all very well, but if she can convince someone to burn her some incense in return for favours, that'd be ace.

She'll stop to investigate anything that looks particularly interesting, or anyone who looks like they might appreciate having an air spirit for a buddy.

*Where Sky comes from, anyways.

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Howling Wolf is travelling with a lizard-demon, just on the outskirts of Denver, Colorado, heading west - it's where the mountains are. She walks within sight of the roads, to keep an eye on moving cars.

The demon is off~~stage~~ somewhere. Howling Wolf is doing some reconnaissance. Which amounts to, when you're a wolf, sniffing the ground and sniffing the air.

A warm breeze ruffles her face.

And then there's a woman standing there in midair, arms folded, looking down at her.

"You're a damn weird kind of spirit," says Sky.

Howling's tail wooshes from side to side at being correctly identified.

"Greetings, air spirit.

"None knows my strangeness more than I. I should have discorporated some time ago," Howling Wolf agrees.

"What's your specialty, fluffball? You got me on air, not that it wasn't obvious. My name's Sky."

Howling is in too good a mood to be bothered over being called 'fluffball'.

"I am Howling Wolf, Greater Jaggling of the wolf choir."

"Alternate universes," says Sky authoritatively, "are weird."

Howling Wolf masks her creeping dread with humour, faint though it is.

"You do not know me, little one? Or is air simply being air?"

"Air is always air, baby, but yeah. Never heard of you before. Where I come from, spirits don't walk around looking like wolves."

"And where I come from, spirits rarely replicate human forms so well."

Howling Wolf was afraid of this - seen in the beginning of her lowering her tail before she sets it back to normal.

"Do you at least have a Shadow?"

"...a what now?"

"A spirit without a spirit-world..." Howling Wolf muses.

"It works for us."

Shrug.

"How so? From what or whom do you derive your essence?"

"I'm an air spirit. My-- essence, if that's what you call it-- is air. I don't get it from anywhere, it's just me, y'know?"

"How interesting. My kind of spirits gain our essence from resonance with beings or objects in the mud-world, devouring spirits of the same type, or spirits of those our type usually eats."

"...if you mean how do I eat, smoke. And ice spirits eat ice, and fire spirits burn things, and so on."

Howling Wolf gives an "Ah," of comprehension. And a wag of her tail. They have more in common than she thought!

"Uh-huh."

"I cannot offer you smoke, I fear. Once I could have changed my shape, but now...."

She flicks her ear as if shooing away a fly.

"Nevertheless, are there other spirits in this strange land?"

"Haven't seen any, but it's a big planet."

"Are there any other cities that still have life within?"

"Try Kansas."

Howling Wolf tilts her head in curiosity.

"Which direction is that?" To sweeten the pot: "When I get there, I shall organize a great bonfire in your honor."

Spirits of the earth's Shadow do things for favours. It's a thing.

"That way." She jerks a thumb and flashes Howling a bright grin. "Make sure they burn something nice-smelling, right? If I'm gonna have a feast it might as well be a nice one."

Her tail whisks from side to side.

"Do you have a particular scent you prefer?"

"Usually I'll take what I can get, but I've got a liking for cedar, if you can get it. And maybe a little sage for flavour."

"If I smell any, I shall have Tricorn Writhen pick some. Or persuade others that I meet to do so. Thank you, boundless one."

"No problem. See you around."

And with that, she ruffles and twists and whirls and fades away into the wind.

Air spirits aren't much for goodbyes.

On the wind is the sound of a wolf howling, calling her fellow-traveller to her.

They have a long journey ahead of them.

Somewhere in the South, a fire is going. A youngish girl sits beside it, warming her hands, and shivering slightly in the cold of the night. Spike has yet to figure out he can change back, and, even if he could, he probably wouldn't, yet. Too much fun being alive.

Mmmmmm, fire.

Sky swirls around the blaze, drinking in the smoke.

It probably looks a little weird to have the wind suddenly cuddling up to the fire.

"What the-" Spike scrambles back, a little bit. "All right, who's there?"

A spiralling breeze solidifies into a blonde woman in a dress, who flips him the finger.

"I'm Sky," she explains casually, hovering over the fire. Her outline wavers with the passing of the smoke. "You've got a nice campfire here."

"Oh, a ghost." Spike shrugs, and goes back to warming his hands. No biggie. "Thanks. Stroke of luck my matches didn' get soaked."

"No, not a ghost."

She reaches down and smacks his hand. All right, so she's not tangible, but when the image of her fingers move through his they're accompanied by a blast of air.

"Air spirit."

Very rudely, she dissipates back into invisibility and keeps circling the fire, drinking the smoke again.

Spike blinks a couple of times, registering it all. "Riiight. Air spirit. Circlin' my campfire." He drops his hand into his hands, sighing. "Well now, isn't this just... special."

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