IC Inbox - Caldera

[needsexcitement]

Want to stop by and chat? Invitations to things? Cadence is ready and willing to answer!

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Text | un: facethestorm

[makingmyway]

Greetings, Cadence. I hope you're well. Are you free to talk sometime?

Thanks, Gmail, for eating this one.

[needsexcitement]

I am! Just let me know when!

Is everything all right?

Whoops. No worries!

[makingmyway]

Yes, everything is fine. In fact it's good news.

Are you available this afternoon?

[needsexcitement]

I am! Where would you like me to meet you?

[makingmyway]

Right now I'm at the market in Grey Ward, but I can meet you somewhere else if it would be easier for you.

action;

[wildwarden]

It had been a few days since Cadence arrived, and it was probably just Night Sky’s absurd sleeping schedule that kept them from meeting, but she made a point to be around today. Kish could handle the shop (she usually did) in the meantime.

The dryad, mostly naked as she often was, was sitting on the kitchen counter eating from a bowl of nuts, seemingly daydreaming while she stated out one of the nearby windows whenever Cadence came through.

"Hey." She smiled. "Don't think we've had the pleasure yet."

[needsexcitement]

I'll see you there in a few minutes!

[And she's going to take off. Wings really are useful when you're allowed to fly.]

[She circles over the market before coming in for a landing. Her shadow overheard has taught the people here to know when she was flying in.]

[She lands and trots towards Dorian, practically prancing with excitement.]

Sooooo tell me the good news~!

[needsexcitement]

"No, we haven't." She raised a hoof to place it against her chest. "My name is Cadence. Lulu invited me to stay here, and thank you so much for allowing me to do so. I promise I'll be out of your manes as soon as possible."

[wildwarden]

"Night Sky." She replied with a nod. "It's nice to meet you. You can stay as long as you need to." They had the room, and if she was a friend of Lucifer's, she wasn't going to try and boot her. The Dryad offered the bowl of assorted nuts. "Unless you want something else?"

[needsexcitement]

"Thank you!"

Her horn lit up, and a handful of nuts were surrounded by the same cyan aura. They then flew over to Cadence where she ate a few.

"I appreciate everything you all have done for me. I know I'm a bit bulky in comparison to you humans."

She sat down on the floor, but the fact remained that she did take up quite a bit of space even if she did mean to.

[wildwarden]

Huh. That was neat. Night Sky did crinkle her nose slightly, though.

"No one in this house is human." Technically Connor was now, but she still wouldn't say as much. "And Halsin is pretty huge, especially when he decides to turn into a bear, so I don't think you're taking up that much space."

[needsexcitement]

She tilted her head curiously to one side at the nose crinkling. That was something that seemed to be a universal indication of disgust.

"Is there something wrong with being human?" she asked.

[wildwarden]

"No." She shrugged. "It's just that we're not human. I'm a dryad — formerly a Sylvan Elf." She waved her hand. "Long story. Calling me a human is just... too broad. They're not the only ones around, and I know some people might take offense to it."

[needsexcitement]

"I had no idea," Cadence admitted. "I thought you all were like ponies where 'human' was the general term for all of your tribes. I'm sorry."

[wildwarden]

"It's okay. You didn't know, and now you do." She popped another nut into her mouth. "So you're a pony? Maybe I'm being ignorant now — I thought you were a unicorn."

[needsexcitement]

"I'm an Alicorn which is a type of pony," she explained. "There are different tribes of pony, the main three being Pegasi, Unicorns, and Earth Ponies. Alicorns are a balance of those three tribes."

There was no offense taken at being called a Unicorn by mistake. It was technically partially true.

[wildwarden]

"Gotcha. Do you have any magic or powers or anything? I met a unicorn once back home, before I died, and she said I was pure of heart but destined for great pain and suffering. So that was... neat."

[needsexcitement]

"I do but I don't have the power of prophecy."

Empathy was already a headache. Prophetic visions always seemed like such a nightmare given the few times she'd sat with Celestia after she'd had one.

"I can cast a variety of spells and fly, of course. Very handy all around. I missed being able to do both before I finally earned the bones to get it all back."

O I forgot. She can do her empathy thing on sky

[wildwarden]

"Yeah, it's weird when you're used to having something. But it's nice they let you try new things here, too. I ended up getting animal transformations and wings so I could fly and fuck around with Lulu." Almost exclusively to fly and fuck around with Lulu, and to cuddle with Halsin and harass her friends as a giant wolf.

"Got any questions for me? We're roommates now, and I'm an open book."

Just let me know if Cadence should sense anything. She's not actively looking.

[needsexcitement]

"It's more like what questions don't I have! And that isn't even going into the questions I have to avoid accidentally offending humans and human-like creatures!"

She thought for a moment.

"What kind of world are you from?"

👍

[wildwarden]

"Well I have time." As for not offending humans, Night Sky didn't really have any advice there. They could be offended or not by so many things.

She shifted on the counter. "It's called Valsheria, and it's huge. I was only ever in a small section of it, in the Sylvan Forest and eventually the Forest of Dreams. The Sylvan, my people, live in these vast woods. We've been there for centuries, trying to stay out of all the wars that stem mostly from the south with the Empire. Those are humans, and they hate anyone that isn't human. Uhm." She hummed, trying to think of how to describe it. "Sylvan Elves are all about freedom. We only have one major city, but the majority of us live out in the wilds. Make our camps, or wander into the few tiny villages around. I was a Wild Warden — we were like... Rangers. Protectors of the forest." She was using a lot of past tense, talking about her time with the Sylvan. "There's more than elves and humans, though. Orcs, centaurs, dwarves..."

[needsexcitement]

"It sounds lovely."

She paused, considering her next question.

"I'm sorry if this is offensive, but you said you died back there...?"

[wildwarden]

"I did, a long time ago." She didn't seem as upset about that as one might assume. "I was sick with a contagious disease, and it eventually killed me. I knew it was coming — it didn't bother me."

Her brows furrowed. What she said next was laced with exhaustion and resentment. "A fey — a powerful magic creature — revived me so I could serve him. Made me this." A motion to herself. "A dryad, immortal, meant to fight his adversary for the rest of eternity. Not anymore, though, now that I'm here."

More like: now that Lucifer had ripped her soul away from the fey. Ooops.

[needsexcitement]

Good job, Lucifer. That certainly won't have any potential long-term consequences.

She nodded her understanding. "It's hard to uphold your duties if you're not even in the same world to do so."

She certainly understood that.

[wildwarden]

It's always better than the alternative.

"I don't want to uphold them anyway." She shrugged. "I'd rather be free."