Sparrow returned near the pack lands for a bit. The pirate band was coming together in one way or another and as the seasons slowly changed, Sparrow wondered if they'd be able to form one before the winter. As she came to the familiarity of the orchard, it was hard to ignore the alterations the season brought. While some of the trees did indeed just shrivel and die- or not die but do the thing where they looked dead but weren't dead... DORMANT! Yes, Sparrow knew that word- other trees were filled with brilliant yellows, oranges and red the likes Sparrow had never seen.

Actually, she HAD seen just exactly the likes of leaves like this before, but they were so striking that it was hard to imagine they were just as vibrant the last year. It wasn't every day someone was face to face with the trees turning into the metaphorical sun, so the woman was keen to enjoy it while it lasted. She had no real way to preserve this and she knew that later the trees would be leafless and brown and the ground would be blanketed white with snow. Then everything would go back to green. It was for only a short while that the leaves shone with such spectacular color and the ground, littered with the already fallen leaves, crunched so nicely underfoot. Foraging animals hopped and bounded about trying to find the last morsels of food before the chill hit.

Some trees in the orchard, however, were still a dark green. Sparrow knew from her father that winter harbored in some specific fruits like satsumas and cumquats and other citrus fruit which could be used for wines and things. While many of them were still flowering or harbored tiny green fruits, there was nothing immediately edible in this batch.

Right at the moment, Sparrow went around, noting which trees would be of use in the winter. If she was with the pirates by then, then having the ability to make fresh wines would be handy. And when they had their first raid and first post-raid party, they'd need all the alcohol they could get! It was only a matter of time that her pirate band, like the late fall citrus, came into full bloom- full fruition- and were ready to harvest, store, and ferment into something much better and more grand than the simple branches they came from before.

WC: 405

Somehow Hyacinth found his paws carrying him back towards the orchard where he'd first met Bait a season ago, the grass already growing brown and crunchy under his paws as he walked. The saccharin scent of over-ripened fruit from summer shifting to the bittersweet smell of rotting fruit and even as he approached he could see the ground dotted with the fruit that had dropped from their branches, sagging and wrinkled, at least where they weren't buried under an already thick blanket of leaves. His mismatched gaze swung upwards as he started passing the first trunk, the canopy above his head had moved from a variety of greens to a wide array of autumnal tones, oranges, yellows, reds. Though he hadn't failed to notice the deep greens of some trees and the man frowned, he hadn't had much experience with winter fruits and so to see trees whose leaves had yet to turn was unusual for him. Hyacinth sniffed cautiously at one of the fruits at his paws, wrinkling his nose as the scent hit him. He'd had a few drinks with his siblings before but wasn't quite sure how the process of making them actually worked, outside of the usage of fermented fruits... but these missed the slight intoxicating scent of wine and smelled more rotten, which they probably were. The crunching of leaves under another living being's feet made the man's ear's perk. He lifted his head, narrowing his eyes as he peered through the trunks, curious as he always was. The young man remained still for a moment, pinpointing the location of the stranger, her scent drifting to him on the soft autumn breeze, mixed with the earthy scents of the leaf fall and rotting fruit. A smile graced his features as he wound among the trees, his own approach unmasked by the crunch under his own paws. It took a moment to spot her, the young woman's coat was similar in color to many of the trees and it was only her movement that truly gave her away. "Well, didn't expect to find such a beauty around here." Hyacinth said, sliding up beside a nearby tree. Hyacinth was a flirt but he'd never lie about finding another attractive and though she didn't bear the colors of the rainbow on his pelt like his siblings did the woman was easy enough on the eyes. WC: 397 (797/1500) "Speak" Think

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The crunch of the leaves beneath Sparrow's paws soon was accompanied by another. It wasn't uncommon for others to be here and as long as he didn't get entirely too close, Sparrow was willing to pay him no mind. She kept to the plants, noticing some grew more than one type of fruit. Was that... possible? Sparrow SAW a tree doing it and yet she didn't really believe it. The branches bent and swayed with the chilly autumnal breeze, signifying that winter was not all that too far off despite it still being more or less warm here.

The other wolf drew closer and the wind brought his scent to her and she was certain she spotted him before he spotted her. She slid up along the flowering trees and offered her a sly compliment. Sparrow rolled her eyes all the way back to the tree, "If there's any beauties out here, I call dibs on her first, ya hear?" Sparrow shot him a short but good-natured glance to show she was joking- kind of. She didn't have any desire to be with some slick talking man. Gods, was this what her father did to come onto girls? Gag.

OOC: made it a little shorter so we can do lots of posts with shorter content to up his post count

wc: 200
twc: 997/1500

Oh? Hyacinth's brow's shot up as the woman responded. He grinned at her, the flirtations dropped from his whole demeanor, fair enough, he wasn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed but he was smart enough to know when he was barking up the wrong tree. "Tell you what, any beautiful ladies we find are yours if I get the men." He said, flashing her a good-natured wink. He pulled away from the tree then, still keeping a safe distance between himself and the woman, he wasn't about to push his luck any further than he already had. For a moment he turned his attention to one of the nearby trees, it was one of the ones that didn't seem to be losing its leaves, he could even make out small buds here and there in the branches, a few specks of orange indicating which fruits would grow from the rest of the new buds. He'd never known oranges to be a winter fruit and yet... Hyacinth cast another glance at the woman, flashing her another grin. "Name's Hyacinth Aracari, hope I didn't disturb your walk too much." WC: 188 (1185/1500) "Speak" Think

Art by Grinfok

The man cut his losses, flipping the script and joking about how if she gets the girls, he gets the men. Sparrow scoffed, "Have at it- in these parts you're probably gonna find a relative of mine anyways. My dad would probably go for it, but he's probably a little old for you." Sparrow shot him a tongue-out, wrinkled nose mock-disgusted look. She didn't care what her dad did, but she didn't wanna know or even think about it.

Sparrow moved to another tree. Ah- satsumas. How were satsumas different than oranges? Sparrow didn't know really, but they had a flavor she liked better. Their skin was thinner too. They, like lemons, didn't really grow until after the first frost, but would die off after the first few snows- if it snowed. It was interesting that something so summery in color could be a winter fruit. The next tree boasted a lemon-like fruit that was much bigger and more bitter than sour. A little of this, Ashmedai had taught Sparrow, could really give depth to a brew, but too much would ruin it into a pithy, terrible mess.

The man introduced himself and Sparrow offered a loose smile and a tail wag, "Sparrow Imperialis- pack wolf and soon to be king of the pirates," she rattled off, her eyes coming to meet his own. "You didn't disturb me any more than anyone else would, if that's a consolation. You drink alcohol?"

wc: 244
twc: 1429

Well, that was some interesting information, this wasn't too far from the beach he'd been forced to spend an entire, incredibly sober and sex-free, night on and he wondered if the woman's family had something to do with that. "Well guess I know who I'm looking for next." He said teasingly. It didn't take much to see the woman was also interested in the fruit he'd spotted, and he took a moment to nose around at the ground, taking note of which fruits he'd found, he'd never exactly spent a long time considering which fruit ripened when but here... well now he was basically forced to consider it, and couldn't help but be a little excited to see the little oranges grow during the cooler months. Hyacinth's brows lifted again as Sparrow identified herself as a soon to be king of the pirates, that he'd have to delve into that in a bit. He chuckled at the woman's question though. "When I can get away from my more motherly siblings." He said nodding. WC: 173 (1602/1500) "Speak" Think

Art by Grinfok