#desert duo birdcage au

[the-mythos-collection]

When a dorky wood elf meets the god of the forest idk stuff happens-

This is fanart for a fanfic that's wiggled itself into my dumb little desert duo brain. A fic by @tobias-vale called the birdcage au and holy mackerel it has my brain in a choke hold!!! /pos

I'd 100% suggest you check it out. It's on their tumblr page or on they're ao3 where we found it. Please go give them some love, their work is beautiful. In the meantime here's an unfiltered version (I.e. With no overlay)

I need them in my life 💔

[tobias-and-tyko]

Art of Scar and Grian from my fanfic Birdcage au :)

Which you can read here:

[tobias-and-tyko]

¡Destertduo! Birdcage au.

Chapter 5

It was late evening when he entered the room. The mattress, bedsheets and pillows were already there, as was a weak paraffin lamp standing on the floor next to the mattress.

With the lamp as an exception, the room was almost always in full darkness. The scientists said that it was to confuse the being, and a joke had gone around that since it had wings, it was a bird of sorts. If you wanted to make a bird calm, you just had to drape a cloth over its cage, it would think that it was night and be quiet.

It was slightly warmer here than in Scars room the same morning, which wasnt so surprising. While his room had a wall towards the outside, the “dark room” was more inside of the house. Which meant that none of its walls were exposed to the cold.

In his left hand Scar held a bowl of raw meat, and with his right hand he held his art supplies. Scar hadn't fed it that day, he hadn't had the time to do that.

After Solidarity had convinced him that he wasn't joking, they together went out to help to bring stuff in to dry and to put in rooms. Scar had not even given a mere thought to the creature, and now he was standing in front of it.

He carefully walked over to the big metal cage. The door closed behind him and the only light that remained in the room came from behind him, making his shadow cast over the cage. The creature was slumped towards one side of the cage, seeming quite lifeless.

“Aww I hope I haven't killed it.” He thought jokingly. Maybe the scientists were right about the whole bird in the dark thing.

After days of not daring to leave the bowl of meat at least two or so decimeters away from the cage, Scar got the courage to get close enough, stretch his arm through the bars and put down the bowl with a slight *clank* on the floor of the cage. He distinguished some movement, heard rustling of feathers and quickly yoinked out his hand from between the bars.

He anxiously sat there, with bent knees, arms wrapped around the legs, and waited for the bird-like-creature to show any signs of life.

He was starting to get slightly worried. Giving the food once a day was such a simple task, and he had somehow failed at it.

Then an idea appeared. If the theory about birds getting less active from darkness was true, then maybe he should try to wake it up with light! He quickly brought the lantern from his bedside and put it down by the cage.

Some time passed and no more movement came from the creature. Scar was beginning to get restless. He looked over to his arks of paper that he had brought with him. Surely it couldn't hurt to entertain himself a bit while he waited, right?

When he finally settled down, cross legged with paper on a board tilting on his knees, he gently knocked at the bars of the cage.

-“ Hey birdie, time to wake up. I've got some meat for you!” After not getting any response, he shrugged and leaned on the cage, the metallic cold of the bars sipping through when his back touched them, making him slightly shudder. Then he started to draw.

Finishing the last detail, a wide arch in between two pillars, he put down the stump that was left of his pen on the floor and examined his drawing. Slightly tilting his head, he looked at it.

The warm light spread over the sheet of paper, making the areas he had shaded darken, and the highlighted areas really pop. He was proud of this one, and thinking about what he would draw next he picked up his pen again. When he suddenly heard humming from behind.

Stiffening in horror, he didn't dare to turn around, afraid of what was there. The humming continued, and Scar felt a breath down his neck.

“Heck, what do I do now?” He thought, quitely panicking on the inside. Would it be smart to move away from the cage, or would his legs make him too slow? He felt stupid for not noticing the creature wake up and get so close to him. He had gotten too enveloped in his work. Scar thought about the talons of the creature that he had seen on the day of its arrival, sharp and long.

Scar carefully and slowly glanced back, trying to move his head as little as possible.

He saw the creature looking over his shoulder, down at his drawing. With great detail it viewed the art, taking in every bit of it. It looked as if it was almost… in awe?

Scar delicately took the arc of paper from his lap, and gave it to the being, not knowing what to expect. Curiosity took over fear, and he was intrigued to what the creature would do with the drawing.

The being reached out its claw-equipped hand and accepted the piece of paper. He could now clearly see how in awe it was of his sketch, and couldn't help but feel a bit proud. The talons didn't seem as scary and sharp as he had imagined them, now when they lightly and delicately held the paper.

-“Do you like it?” He asked, not expecting there to be an answer. The creature hummed and nodded.

-“Yes, it's beautiful.” It answered in a light but clearly masculine tone, much to Scars surprise. For some reason, the creature being able to suddenly speak out of nowhere didn't scare him. Instead it probed him to scooch closer to the cage.

The creature looked up when it saw Scar move, locking eyes with him again.

-“Do you have more?” It asked. Scar nodded and got up. He exited the room, and walked through the corridor, heading to his own. He as quietly as he could opened the door and snuck over to his table, trying to make as little noise as he could with his cane. He saw people sleeping on his bed and on the floor, stepping over one on his way in and out.

Returning to the room he rested his hand on the door knob, suddenly doubtful. Was this really happening? There was no way that beast could speak. He snorted and pushed away his doubts as he pushed the door handle down, leaving them outside of the room. The room remained exactly the same as he had left it, well, not quite. The drawing that he had given to the creature had been put on the floor outside of the cage, and as the door opened, the being looked up. Their glances met once again, and Scar half-stumbled towards the cage, not being able to look away.

The creature's eyes were almost hypnotic. He once again saw sceneries from the forest, lush trees and exiting caves, coming nearer and nearer as he foundered closer and closer to the cage. He saw green, and blue, and all kinds of different colors. Until he finally found himself sat, facing the creature in the cage. Somehow his paintings had still managed to remain in the grip of his arms, and he stuck them through the bars, where the creature took them as gently as before.

||| Authors note |||

Hey guys! Thanks to everyone who has supported my fic so far :D

Especially aroacepotato, I see you liking my post every time I update this fic :)

[tobias-and-tyko]

Scarian fanfic, but Grian is a being held captive in a (bird)cage and Scar gets the duty of giving him meals, not fully understanding that what his coworkers have caught is actually the god of the forest that surrounds their base.

Chapter 1 Birdcage AU

He could see the reflection of the light that came from the slightly open door on the creature's dark wings. He could also hear the rustling of feathers as the being inside of the cage backed away from the person standing in the doorway as much as he could.

Scar was unsure of how to act, should he try soothing the creature in some way before approaching him, or should he leave the bowl of meat in range of the cage without interacting at all?

The feathered creature was silent now, as if he was waiting for something. Scar saw this as a chance, and in the silence he, with the help of his cane, treaded closer to the cage.

He decided on the latter, bending down and carefully putting the bowl down, both to not scare the being, the half wild animal with the clank of the metal hitting the floor, and for his legs not to feel worse pain than they already felt.

He never really knew when their eyes met, his and the creatures. He only really understood it when he looked into eyes that were filled with glimpses of a spruce forest. Sunny glades with moss and trees occupying the corners, chirping of birds filling the silence, that Scar otherwise experienced being out in the forest. Rippling streams running over slippery stones under the crones of trees, that stretched far out into the sky.

The eye contact got broken when wings with raven-like feathers covered the face of the being, as if to shield themselves from Scars gase.

-“Scar!” Someone suddenly shouted. “What the hell are you doing in there with that beast for so long?”

He warily stood up, and as quickly as he could walked over to the door. He answered from there.

-“I was just getting ready.” He not so loudly shouted back. As Scar closed the door, he waved calmly to the being in the cage. Then the room fell in darkness as he closed the door behind him.

[tobias-and-tyko]

Chapter 4

The snow came suddenly, three days after the arrival of the count and his following. Scar got woken up by squeals of laughter coming from outside, the younger inhabitants of the settlement having a fight with snowballs. While rubbing out the morning drowsiness out of his eyes with one hand, the other fumbled after the cane by his bedside.

After quickly getting up, with stale muscles aching from the cold and lying down he struggled to the window, once again looking out.

He looked at the children playing in the snow. He felt happy, for even if he himself couldn't be out there, fighting with the ones his age because of his legs that ached especially much during the freezing winter, his big, kind heart melted from seeing the genuine happiness of the others.

But he got worried when he looked over at the tents that the servants of the count had installed a few days ago. The snow laid in a thick layer on the cloth, bending it down. He also saw how the cloth was all wet from the melting snow too, and by observing how thin the fabric was, it couldn't possibly keep the cold out.

-” It’s no worries Mike, I'll talk to him myself.” He heard someone say.Soon enough he saw someone peek into his room once again. He didn't mind that people came over, not that many did that. The man who had now entered the room had the name Solidarity(also known as Jimmy).

He was a nice man, but sometimes he didn't think before he spoke, which often got him into trouble. He also was one of the few persons who spoke to Scar, except for some other people.

His height was a thing that he was quite insecure about, and sometimes Scar and him would have a few drabbles about it, which often resulted in Solidarity storming off angrily. But he always would come back, because no one who knew Scar on a more personal level, could resist the good times :).

As Scar watched him, he saw how Solidarity's eyes wandered across the timber walls, looking at his sketches and drawings on them. When at last his gaze settled on him, he smiled widely.

-”Hello Scar!” he said cheerfully. ”Good to see that you are awake, it really is a hustle to try and wake you up, you sleep like a log.” Scar tiredly smiled back as he sat down on the chair next to the small table.

-”Well hello there Jimmy.” He replied calmly. ”What's going on?”

Strolling around the room, looking at the nailed-up drawings Solidarity answered.

-”Nothing much, I'm afraid. Well, there might be a sliiiiight issue.”

He stopped by the window. Looking out and back at Scar again. He wore a brown, warm-looking, leather coat. The shoulders looked wet which meant that he had just been outside. Scar didn't say a word, patiently waiting for Solidarity to continue. And so he did. Setting his gase outside he said:

-'' You see all this snow Scar? Well, the count ain't’ happy, an’ he wants him and his staff to live inside till’ the snow’s gone. The only problem is-” he said, turning back to Scar.

-“ That there isn't enough room to fit all of the staff.” He said with a sigh.

Scar was confused. Why did Jimmy come to him to say this bit of information? Why did he need to know about this?

-“ Oh, okaaay, and how does this affect me?” He replied, still confused.

-“ Well, we figured, me and the other ———- that you could possibly sleep in the same room as “the beast,” while we gave your room to some of the newly arrived. You feed it and all that after all.”

Jimmy answered as nonchalantly as he could. Though Scar still heard a quiver of nervousness slip into his voice. He couldn’t quite comprehend what Solidarity meant. Was he really proposing the idea of Scar, maybe not living, but at least sleeping in the same room as the rumored being? The feathered creature? He figured that it was probably one of Timmys weird jokes. He decided to follow along to see where it would end.

It ended with him standing outside the closed door to the room where the creature was, a pencil and some unfinished sketches in hand.

[tobias-and-tyko]

Birdcage au Final chapter 11

Before exiting the building, Scar stopped by their his room to put on some warmer clothes. He also found one of his wool sweaters that had sadly shrunk in the wash. Now it fit perfectly on Grian, and after cutting two holes in the back for the wings to fit through, he put it on. It really felt nice, the red fluffy wool. Even though it was a little prickly towards his skin, after a lot of wear and tear, the wool had become soft and flexible. Scar put on his dark-brown leather jacket with a little symbol that was a light-blue circle with a yellow dash across the middle, on the left arm.

They were finally ready to go out into the woods, wind howling around them. When Scar looked back at Grian as they entered the woods, his cheeks were already red from the cold. Snow came from all directions and blinded them. But when Scar stopped to try to orient himself, Grian took his hand and pulled him forward, pointing with his other deeper into the forest. Maybe he had some sort of internal compass similar to a pigeon, Scar thought and smiled to himself. The smile soon faded, as it became very hard to get through the snow with bad-functioning legs that hurt, and a cane as the only support. Speaking of the cane, it suddenly vanished and Scar fell forward, plummeting into the snow. Grian yelped, not strong enough to keep him up and followed along. When Scar looked back to see what had happened to his stick, he saw a familiar contour towering up behind him with his cane in hand. The clinically white lab coat billowed in the wind and melted into the surroundings, the only thing that he clearly saw was black, messy hair.

-“ Cub!” Was the only thing that came out when Scar shouted. He stretched over his hand to take back the cane from Cubs grip, but the man noticed and raised it over his head, looking down back at Scar. Scar grimaced as he looked over Cubs head at what he was holding from his reach.

-“ Now where do you think you are going with our little… bird?” He sneered, looking from Scar on the snow-covered ground to Grian who had still not let go of Scar's hand after they had fallen. They all were like that for a while, looking at each other while snowflakes fell. The only sound filling the air was the hurling wind all around them, throwing cloth around, ruffling their hair.

-“ Cub, please, you don't know what this is about, let me explain please!”

-“ Don't know what this is about? Oh please, of course I know.” He replied, waving the cane between the both of them. Scar got hopeful.

-“ So you know that if we don't get to the heart of the forest, the winter will last forever?” Cub looked confused, lowering the staff.

-“ Wh- no? What do you mean?” Scar quickly explained to him that Grian was a god who had lost his powers from of being away from the forest for too long, and Cub looked more and more confused. Scar started freezing from being stuck in the snow, hands shivering. Grian must have noticed it, because Scar felt a gentle squeeze on his hand, and when he looked up, he saw Grian’s face that gestured to him. Scar braced himself, and Grian pulled him up in one fell swoop, putting Scar’s arm around his shoulders, supporting him.

-'' Ouff, you're heavy.” Grian exhaled quietly. Scar smiled.

-“ Thanks, it's all my big muscles.” He answered gleefully. Looking back at Cub from Grian, he stood open mouthed staring at them, mostly Grian. It only then struck Scar that he probably was so shocked because he didn't know that his feathery friend could speak. He smiled even more, but more mischievously now. He straightened out his back as much as he could and confidently spoke again.

-“ Well Cub, will you let us continue our journey, or not?” Cub at first was quiet, he never opened his mouth, but there was this feeling that he wanted to say something. He looked down at the snow, thinking.

-“ I'm sorry that I- I assumed-…“ he mumbled, then became quiet.

-“ Of course, yeah here.” He continued and stretched out the handle of the cane towards Scar. Scar took it back and steadied himself, sighting, pleased. He felt a pull on his arm again. Turning around his friend gestured to him once again towards the woods. Grian and him started walking away from the silent Cub, who was still looking down at the ground. After a while Scar looked back to see if he still could see him. He saw his silhouette standing, arms folded at the front, looking after the two of them.

As he vanished more and more in the blizzard, he looked extremely lonely. Hopefully when he had fully gathered himself and walked the long way back to the facility through the deep snow, his bodyguard would be waiting for him by the doorstep,with a blanket in hand to warm him up.

Scar didn't know how far they walked, snow and trees making everything look the same and the blizzard not allowing them to see far(low render distance). He felt cold, the only part of his body feeling warm being the hand that held Grians. Suddenly, he bumped into Grian who had stopped in front of him. Looking around, he started noticing familiar details. Then he realized that the place where they were, was one of the many that he had seen in his companions eyes. Looking towards the middle of the glade he could see the small, now from the cold, frozen creek. Looking up towards its base, he saw a big rock. Grian walked closer to the rock, dragging Scar along with him. As the both of them got closer, Scar could distinguish a few things on the rock. First of all, that it wasn't just plain stone, but actually a moss and snow-covered statue. It was a statue of a muscular, bearded man. He stood in a confident stance, one hand on the hip while the other hung by the side. The clothes he wore were similar to a toga, a piece of cloth that people wore in ancient Greece. His head was adorned with a crown of bayleef leaves. His attention returned back to Grian as he let go of his hand. Scar saw him walk over to the statue, the massive chiseled rock towering over him. He heard Grian start muttering, and under a few minutes nothing happened. Suddenly, a massive explosion of light came from the statue and the place where Grian stood. Scars first reaction was to cower and cover his eyes with his arm. Somehow the howling of the wind diminished when the light appeared, but not the snowflakes and the blizzard. They were like small crystals that reflected the light tenfold. Scar blindly stumbled towards Grian, and hearing him suddenly yelp in pain, made him move faster. When his fumbling arm finally reached feathery wings he squinted over Grians shoulder. In Front of him was a shining orb of glowing mass, it was the source of all the light that spread all over the clearing, making the white snow shine. Grian had his arms half-stretched towards it, but not more than that, as if a massive power came from the orb that hindered him from coming any nearer. But despite that he kept pushing himself nearer and nearer. It looked like it hurt, he grimaced in pain, but didnt stop. When he was only a few mere inches away, his hands stopped again. Another pain filled shriek left his throat.

-“ Scar!” He screamed panicked.

-“ Help!”

Scar was not late to aid. He took one of Grians hands and helped him push it towards the globe, only now feeling the great force emerging from it. He strained and focused on it and now with his help, the both of their hands got nearer and nearer to the sphere. Scar felt how the air around the globe felt tingly before their fingertips touched it. Another massive explosion of light appeared, this one brighter than before. It blinded Scar, leaving his ears ringing. He felt cold snow towards his back, Grian lying against his arm, wings splayed out on both of his sides, some feathers getting into Scars face. There was a slight vignette around his field of vision, and the only thing he noticed before closing his eyes once again was the absence of the sound of the howling wind.

Warmth, it felt warm, was the first thing Scar thought. He was no longer lying on the ice cold snow, but on a soft mattress, covered by a thick and heavy blanket, that felt comforting on his tired body.

He suddenly opened his eyes, remembering the last thing he had seen. Grians seemingly lifeless body resting on his arm, eyes shut tightly. His own eyes still hurt a bit too after the intense light, but the light that was in the room at the moment, wasn't so bright that it stung. Sensing something on his right, he turned his head to see what was there. His heart skipped a beat after he saw Grian lying next to him on a mattress too, appearing to be sound asleep.

The door to the room opened, and in came Cub, and as always, Iskall following close behind him. Cub walked forward to Scars end side of the mattress, stopping there, watching him.

-“ How are you feeling Scar?” He asked with genuine worry in his voice. Scar steadied himself on his forearms, slightly sitting up.

-“ I have certainly felt better, but at least I am not dying right now.” He said and smiled. But a question still remained in his head.

-“ How did you find us? Didn't the snow cover our tracks?”

Now it was Cubs turn too smile, although the smile contained a bit of guilt.

-“ Well,” he said and looked at Iskall. ” When I came back to the facility, the guilt of… yeah, was really eating me up inside. I met Iskall by the entrance and explained everything to him. We then together decided to head back into the forest to see if you needed any help, since the snowfall was really peaking at that point. Just as we were losing hope, we reached the glade where we found you. Around that time the wind ebbed out and the snowfall stopped falling. After that, we brought you back here and the rest you know.”

There was a silence for a while, Cub letting Scar process what he had just told him. Scar didn't actually care how they had been found, just too tired to think of anything else to ask or say. The most important part was that they were alive and well. He yawned, covering it with his arm. Cub seemed to grow a little impatient from just standing there.

-“ Well, I'll leave you to your well-deserved rest, you have after all helped to save the forest, or something along those lines. Goodbye.” He said as he trotted out, lifeguard by his side. When Scar looked back at Grian, he already was turned to him, lying on his side, hand on the pillow beside his head. Grian smiled at him, and stretched out his hand towards Scar, such a simple gesture that meant so much. Scar also extended his hand towards him, and they met in the middle. Both were now smiling warmly at each other, not saying a word. They closed their eyes, one after the others, and fell sound asleep, going to rest till spring.

[tobias-and-tyko]

Birdcage au. Chapter 10

They talked some more, but in the end Scar went back to his room. He sat down on the mattress in the room, sounds from the outside getting blurred by the collosal emptiness he now noticed. Now he understood why it had felt so empty, it was not easy to fill the presence of a god.

Still shocked by the news, he dug his hands into the sheets, relaxing and curling his fists around the cloth, the action similar to a cats. The only thing that hadn't ebbed out for him was the increasing noise of the blowing wind, it sounded like a whole storm.

Scar must have somehow fallen asleep despite the howling of the wind, because when he woke up again, the light that shone in through the open door was cold, like the light of the night. Clutching the cane in hand again, he wandered the corridors like a ghost, looking out at the full-blown snowstorm that had started a few hours ago, but did not show any signs of settling down.

Somehow, by walking through long-winded corridors, he ended up outside the lab again. Testing the handle of the door to see if it was locked, it revealed itself to be open. He set the door ajar and snuck in, having only one thing in mind. Looking at the doors that were in the lab, he didn't understand how he hadn't seen it in broad daylight. There it was, a heavy iron door with inscriptions against magic in copper and other small trinkets hanging on it, each being an enchantment against something. Scar stood in front of the door observing it. Then he desiselvy put his hand on the handle and pressed inwards. A loud scraping noise was heard as it opened, which made the skin on Scars hands prickle. He was surprised that the door wasn't locked, but then again, who would open it, the chained and sedated creature inside?

As the door opened, a sight met Scars eyes. Through a narrow window, light streamed down covering everything in a cold glow. The everything was Grian, chained by ankles and wrists curled up on the floor, black feathers glistening under the moonlight. They had all sorts of colors, deep green, dark blue, and even some violet. His eyes opened. They were no longer green.

It didn't matter to Scar, he still stumbled forwards, kleening down by the creature who looked at him, eyes full of shame.

He cupped his chin gently, looking deep into Grians eyes.

-“ Hello friend.” He said quietly. Tears welled out of his eyes, and he moved his limbs forward in an attempt to hug Scar. But the chains stopped him. A rustle was heard as they restrained him, keeping him in place. Instead Scar moved forward, softly embracing the creature who also put his arms around the other, hugging him tightly. They remained like that for a while, wind howling outside, as if to catch up with all the time they had been away from each other. In the end, Grian let go first, and carefully pushed Scar away, not meeting his eyes.

-“ It's my fault.” Grian said, breaking the silence. “ The snow is all my fault.” Scar raised an eyebrow, glancing at his friend with concern.

-“ What do you mean Grian, it's winter?” He replied confused.

-“ No, I have been away for too long, it will only get worse and worse. Spring will never come if I am not there. And now I will not be able to do it, because I've lost my powers.” He finally looked up, eyes filled to the brim with tears, irises the color of onyx brown. They looked empty, devoid of any sorts of magic, similar to what they have had before.

-“ Is there any way to fix it?” Scar asked after a few seconds of taking in what Grian had just said.

-“ Well, yes, there is a way, but that would involve me having to travel to the heart of the forest, and in the condition that I am in…” he didn't continue as he shook his head. Scar stood up not saying , looking around for the keys to the chains. He had decided, he would help the god of the forest.

[tobias-and-tyko]

Chapter 9

Carefully opening up the creaking door to the lab, Scars eyes searched for the familiar mass of wings. There were some other people in the room too, and they cautiously looked at him, for they had never seen him here before. He didn't care about their glances, as he fully stepped into the room eyeing the walls and floor for any signs of his friend.

-” Hello Scar. Looking for something?” Someone asked from behind him. Scar got startled by the unexpected sound. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath in, opening them as he turned around.

-” Well hello there! Nice day, isn't it?” Scar said smiling. Cub coldly smiled back at him, seeming mildly irritated.

-“ What are you doing in the lab?” He asked again. Scar leaned on his cane while scratching his neck. He hoped that his nervousness wasn't noticeable as he glanced up back at the scientist. Contrary to Cub who didn't seem to bother to hide his emotions.

Cub crossed his arms and looked expectantly at him, corner of his mouth slightly twitching. What was he supposed to answer? He decided to be honest, this couldn't get any worse for him.

-“ I was looking for the creature. He wasn't in his cage when I woke up.”

-“ He? His cage? Scar, this is a beast! Thank the gods that we came there in time before he did something worse than knocking you out! You also left open the door to the cage, do you know what would have happened if he would have gotten loose in the facility?”

Scar stood there while Cub berated him, like a student being scolded by the teacher. When Cub finally was done with explaining exactly all of the possible outcomes to the open door of the cage, he slid his hand across his face, pinching the bridge of his nose and rubbing it. Scar looked down on the floor. This was all worth it if he would get to know where Grian was, but his question never got answered. He looked back up at Cub, who looked back at him with suspicion.

-“ why do you want to know where it is anyways?” He said and raised a brow.

-“ I was just concerned for… the wellbeing of our guests.” He answered. “ If you didn't know where the creature was, then maybe-

-“Of course I know where it is! It's in a room that it will not be able to escape. Sure, my men had some trouble with bringing it there. It fought against them with all its might, but we found a way to win in the end, like we always do.”

What have they done to him? Scar wondered, his palms beginning to sweat. Only then he noticed that the wound on his wrist was bandaged up. Funny how he hadn't seen that before. But he still was nervous for Grian, so as casually as he could, he kept the conversation going.

-“ You won, you say. How exactly did you win over such a beast, as you call it?” He said, looking nonchalantly at his cane.

-“ Well,” Cub said, walking further into the lab, taking an empty vial and starting to polish it.

-“ First of all, we put it in chains.” Scar heard the snowfall he had seen at the start of the morning get heavier.

-“ Second, we gave it some sedatives. Well, not some. Quite a lot actually.” Now steadying himself with both of his hands on the cane, the hands gripped the cane harder in an attempt to control himself, nails gritting into the wood in anger. How could such a learned man not understand how feeble the thing he called a beast actually was? Sure, it could protect itself, but at the core it was just a gentle creature. Scar had seen it on the many evenings and nights that they had spent together. The childlike admiration it had clearly felt for his paintings, its own gentle strokes on a piece of paper. The emotions that it had shown at those times, or thoughts that it had shared with Scar, had convinced him: it was definitely not fit to be held in chains and given sedatives.

Scar breathed out. He noticed how Cub was examining him, looking at his tightly clenched hands around the walking stick, and his probably stern expression. Whatever it was Cub saw on his face, it made him continue to speak, this time in a less cocky tone.

-“ I guess that I'm in the wrong for calling it a beast, as it's not really one.” Scar wondered for a minute if Cub had some kind of telekinesis powers. But when he looked at him again, it seemed that Cub just had a change of heart, wanting to explain why he had treated the creature as he had done.

-“ you see Scar, it's not a monster, it's fairly quite the opposite. Have you heard about the myths that surround what we have captured, Scar?” He nodded. It had been one of the things that intrigued him to come here in search of a job. Cub stepped closer to Scar, till they were only a few inches from each other.

-“ This creature has some special powers that I would like to do some research on. These powers make it very strong, it's much more advanced than anything in at least this part of the earth. You could almost call it godlike.” A shudder went through Scar as he heard the last words. They echoed in his skull, drilling themselves into his thoughts and not letting go, keeping his mind occupied by them. He remembered the greenery-filled eyes that he had met with a few times, and it made sense, maybe not all of it, but a few parts that had been foggy before, cleared. The feeling he had felt when he lived in the same room as Grian, the calm that enveloped him during the evenings and when he slept. Under those times, his mind had been protected by a god.

II authors note ll

Hellooooo everyone! Thanks for the continuous interactions! I was testing around with the slightly leaning font(idk what it’s called font experts spare me pls) I hope that I didn’t overuse it, I mostly put it in places that felt right. Its a lot of snow here in Sweden so I got very inspired by it. Two or three chapters left to go until this story reaches its end, thanks again for all the support <3

[tobias-and-tyko]

Chapter 8

Scar shoved the key in the lock, not twisting it to unlock the door. Every doubt he had ever had about the creature came crashing back to him so hard that exhaustion swept over him and he leaned on the cold metal cage, still keeping his hand with a blood-smothered palm on the key. Grian was silent now, not a noise coming from him. Then he started shaking. First it was similar to how you would shake when it was cold, but it became more violent as seconds passed. Suddenly his wings flapped open with such force that it lifted him up from the floor. Scar saw how his hands were dug into his arms, trails of blood trickling down from where his nails dug into the skin. With loud bangs he started body slamming himself against the sides of the cage, wings getting beat up in the process. Black feathers twirled in the air like black snowflakes, or similarly to large and thin flakes of ashes from a newly erupted volcano.

This pushed Scar to finally fumble to turn the key until he heard a click, swinging the small barred door open. Rushing into the cage, he cornered Grian. Still in blind panic, Grian ran into Scar at full speed, slamming him against a wall, making him lose all the air in his lungs at the collision. Still, he didn't lose himself as he gently clasped the creature's head and pressed it firmly to his chest. He also put his arm around his chest and tightly held his sprawling, energy filled body close to his own.

It took a while for Grian to calm down. His wings pushed back against Scars arms, and he found it surprising how strong they were. He still managed to hold them both, ending up also putting the hand that before had held Grians head, around his body. Grian sighted out in defeat, completely sinking into Scars arms, who slowly slid down the wall and slumped down on the floor.

Slowly, he felt the body in his arms relax, wings spreading on the floor, opening up like paper fans. A rhythmic breathing also appeared, and in no time Grian was fast asleep. Not wanting to wake him up, Scar made himself as comfortable as he could be on the hard wooden floor as tried to fall asleep himself.

The first thing he noticed when he woke up was the absence of weight on him. Looking around in the room, laying down on his mattress, he tried getting the sleep out of his eyes, his brain still filled with fog.

The cage was empty.

That made him fully awake.

His eyes went from the empty cage, to the closed cage door with the key still in, a paraffin lamp burning beside it on the floor. The dark shadows in the cage made it look even more empty.

His cane lay by his mattress. Grabbing it he got up and went out of the room to figure out what had happened while he was asleep.

He had a few ideas of who to ask and where to look first. Solidarity probably didn't know what was going on, so he retorted to first go to Cub in the lab, and then to Ren, if he didn't find any information at the scientist’s. Luckily(or unluckily, depends how you see it) he found what he searched for at Cubs place.

[tobias-and-tyko]

Chapter 7

Scar stood outside the room, leaning himself on the robust wall. Time trickled by slowly, and he had nothing to do.

Finally, Cub left the room, Iskall as always following close behind. He gave Scar an askance look as he passed by, but didn’t say anything. As soon as the two of them rounded the corridor, Scar rushed back into the room, his eyes searching the room only to land on a heap of feathers in the cage. He knelt down by it as he kept watching Grian. There was a movement in the feathery pile, and he saw a glimpse of a face, strained hands covering the eyes. Groaning, the creature unfolded, ending up lying on its back alongside the side of the cage where Scar was. Scar reached his hand out towards the creature's claw, stopping momentarily as if in doubt, before deciding to pursue.

-”Grian, are you okay?” Grian didn't react to Scar having put his hand in Grian's open palm. He still covered his eyes with his arm, nose in the nook of his elbow.

-'' They looked at and touched my wings.” He said, curling up his wings closer to his body. ”I didn't want them to do it, but the big guy in the green shirt held my arms and me down.” A quiet sniff came from him, making Scars heart clench from pity once again.

-'' I am not supposed to be this weak.” He heard his friend say in between silent cries. Suddenly the cries stopped, and he heard Grian repeat himself: ”I am not supposed to be this weak, I am not supposed to be this weak. I'm not supposed to be this weak,I'm not supposed to be this weak,Imnotsupposedtobethisweak.- Grians frantic rambling continued as he pressed his wings closer and closer to himself.

-” Grian.” Scar shouted worriedly. He did not care if anyone outside heard, he just wanted this to stop. The creature suddenly pulled his hand to himself, making a deep cut on Scars wrist. He hissed in pain as he quickly yanked back his hand out of the cage. Pressing his bleeding wrist towards his chest, making red spread on his dark brown shirt. Then He got an idea, hardly noticing the pain though the white noise that had filled his head. He didn't know if he dared to, but hearing another cry emerge from beneath the two large black wings he couldn't compose himself any longer . Lifting himself up with his cane, he staggered over to the doorframe, and looked at it, searching for something in the dim light of the lantern. When his eyes saw something shiny, he sighed in relief. Lifting his bloodied arm up, while steading himself with the other, he grabbed the key that hung on a nail hammered into the frame of the door.

[tobias-and-tyko]

¡Desert duo! Birdcage AU

Chapter 3

Looking out through the window, Scar could see many people arriving on horses. They sat off, and handed the leads to the stable boys and girls. From the corner of his eye, Scar could see someone poke their head through his door into the room.

-“ Guests have arrived, get ready and come out to greet them.” He said before vanishing.

Scar grabbed the handle of his cane for support before turning away from the window and walking out of the room, leaving it empty, no trace that he had been there except a dent on the bed where he had sat down.

He knew who had arrived, it was the count and his staff. The count had borrowed money to Ren and the other researchers to make a facility here, deep inside the dark, pine woods. It had been an expensive build since it was so far from everything, Scar didn't exactly know the reason for such a decision, and what it was they were researching here, in the middle of nowhere. But his guesses were that it had something to do with a certain being inside a cage in the main building.

As he walked out almost all of the people who lived in the camp were already there, and he recognized the slightly tubby face of professor Cub. He stood with his black hair shining in the late autumn sun with a bright smile, speaking to the count, who was surveying his surroundings, looking bored and unimpressed. It seemed that Cub had said something intriguing, for the face of the count suddenly lit up as Cub gestured towards the house, the count following close as the professor led the way.

“Well that wasn't that much of a welcome.” Scar thought as he watched the newly arrived set up tents. Observing the treetops, he began thinking of winter. The colors of the leaves on the beech trees began to shift from light green to yellow and orange, like they usually would do at this time of the year, meanwhile the pines stayed the same, if not looking slightly darker than before, but the reason for that was just the setting sun. The brushy branches of the pines turned to a more dark blue as the shades of the night slowly engulfed the world. The only thing that broke through the darkness was the light that appeared through an opening door. Soon after, torches were lit and placed on poles in the ground to surround the tents.