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Mole, by comparison, was worldly and well-traveled, and he didn't stand out in the modern world, among the cities of iron and industry that had often threatened the borders of Eagle's beloved home before an agreement had been met between the two drastically different worlds.
Eagle had always had a low opinion of humans, despising the way they destroyed each other and the gifts of the land they lived upon alike, and so he had paid little attention to Mr. Mole until he had been foolish enough to tread where humans were no longer welcome.
Admittedly, they'd had a rocky start. As the guardian of the forest, Eagle was responsible for dealing with intruders. He was the first line oEagle's corner of the world was small, and his view of the world was even smaller, though not by virtue of choice. He was a bird that had never left the nest, so to speak, and that was fine by him.
Or so it had been until he'd met the notorious Mr. Mole.f defense, and rarely did anyone get past him and farther than a few feet into the forest.
But Mole was persistent, his goals unclear. Day after day, after his first confrontation with Eagle, he tried again and again to get farther into the forest. It was a fools' errand to Eagle, a foolish quest with no chance of success against the guardian of the forest.
And yet, there came a day in which Mole had somehow gotten past him.
Of course, Night Owl and Nostalgia, the second line of defense, put Mole in his place and returned him to the beginning of the forest, but the fact that Mole had gotten so far had intrigued Eagle.
Admittedly, he'd been intrigued from the start.
And so...Eagle decided to take a different approach to the situation. Since Mole would not be deterred, and would certainly cause more trouble, should he be allowed to roam the forest on his own, Eagle decided that he would instead accompany Mole to wherever his destination in the forest was, to ensure its safety.
But Mole still seemed to have no specific goal, merely wandering about the forest with no destination in sight, as if it were nothing more than a casual walk. Something told Eagle that he'd already gotten what he wanted, with these little visits into the forest.
As time went on, Eagle found himself looking forward to Mole's visits. The human had caused no harm, and had instead become somewhat decent company, though they remained worlds apart.
Day by day, it seemed as if their relationship began to change, growing into something fonder, though Eagle refused to believe it until the words slipped out of his mouth after a few bottles of fairy wine split between the two of them. It had been a new thing for Eagle, who had never even considered the possibility of a romantic relationship in the slightest.
From then on, their relationship had well and truly changed, and they'd been taking things slow, more because Eagle, who had never dealt with this before, was rather shy when it came to matters of the heart, such as this.
The last few months had been like this, until Mole finally took a bigger step.
Business was calling Mole away, and he was set to be away for weeks this time. Initially, Eagle had been preparing himself for the long time apart, not looking forward to it, but knowing he had little choice in the matter.
Until the day before Mole had to leave.
The day before he left, he had made his way into the forest, as he always did, though this time he carried with him a suitcase.
Immediately, Eagle had assumed that he had come to say goodbye. After all, why would he bring a suitcase if he were not preparing to leave?
But instead, Mole had passed the suitcase over to him instead, the faintest whisper of a smile on his face as he asked Eagle to come with him this time, and every time after.
Which led to the current predicament.
Trains were a new and fascinating thing to Eagle, and naturally he was more curious than the average person — though Eagle could hardly be considered the average person to begin with.
Mole had gone off to the food cart to bring back snacks, in an attempt to keep Eagle's appetite at bay. He'd told Eagle to stay put, already knowing the man's curiosity about the train and how it worked and what else there was to find aboard it.
Inevitably, Eagle's curiosity got the best of him, and he left his seat, pulled one of the compartment doors open and peeked out into the rest of the train.
Fairies and witches and those others not named were common in the human world now, and so Eagle didn't stand out too much more than usual. The clothes that Mole had brought him helped, he supposed, allowing him to blend in with those on board.
The only things that seemed to draw more attention to himself happened to be his white hair and the scars on either side of his mouth.
Mole had warned him that rumors had spread about the guardian of the forest, but Eagle hadn't quite believed that could be true; he'd been careful not to have much contact with the outside world, suspicious of outsiders.
But as he stepped outside, he could not deny that he drew attention, all manner of people glancing in his direction, expressions shifting to something a little more startled.
It didn't matter much to Eagle; he had more important things to do. Such as peeking into each separate compartment, without worrying about how intrusive it probably was. The dirty looks from the other passengers should have tipped him off, but he still didn't get the message.
But Eagle soon grew bored of peeping on unsuspecting passengers, and went further along the train car until he reached the door, which presumably led into the next one.
Eagle grabbed the handle and pulled on it, but the door didn't budge. He tilted his head, frowning a bit.
Perhaps this was one of those locks that Mole had told him about. But it certainly looked different than the ones that Mole had described when Eagle had asked him about them.
There was no need for locks in the forest he protected, since those who inhabited it knew better than to take what didn't belong to them. Still, Eagle found them to be a curious thing.
Since there was a lock on this door, it must mean that he shouldn't press on any further, right?
Eagle pressed his face against the little window in the door, and understood. It wasn't that he shouldn't go through the door, but instead that it was probably just dangerous; it appeared that this door led to the next train car, with only a piece of metal keeping them connected.
It seemed that trains were unusual and impractical. Not to mention loud.
Admittedly, he knew that he should probably just return to the compartment he was sharing with Mole, instead of exploring further. But there was so much tempting him to continue looking around.
This was the first time he'd been on a train and he wanted to know everything about how it worked.
Eagle leaned closer, examining the lock further; it wouldn't be that difficult to open. He worked on it for a moment, using the khukri that he'd hidden under his shirt to leverage the lock open.
It snapped off, and the door swung open.
Almost immediately, wind whipped into the train car, reminding Eagle how fast the train was going. It was fascinating that huge chunks of metal like this could go so fast. How did it work? Was the train operated by a form of magic that Eagle had yet to witness himself?
His thoughts were momentarily interrupted by the scent of...salt? It was certainly coming from outside, but that made no sense to Eagle. Well, it wasn't as if it mattered at the moment; salt was no danger to him or anyone.
That aside, it seemed as if Eagle had reached a dead end. Most likely, the other door would be locked, and he would not be able to make his way to the front of the train, where he could learn about how this thing was powered. It was a shame, really, because curiosity was eating him alive.
Hm...but Eagle was surely faster than the train by flight at least, right? So...if he just took a quick look at the front of the train, then it would at least sate some of his curiosity, and there would be no harm done unless Mole caught him in the act.
Mole had been gone for a while already, so he'd be back soon, with food for Eagle's grumbling stomach. Food sounded amazing, and Eagle was almost tempted to just return to their shared compartment and wait for the food.
But Eagle was fast, so surely there wouldn't be an issue if he just took a quick flight to the front of the train. He was the fastest bird in the forest, and the trip to the front and back would take less than sixty seconds. What was the harm?
The wind whipping past his face was enough encouragement for him to take a closer look; he itched to feel the wind in his feathers anyway, and sitting in that stuffy compartment was less than enjoyable for him. And the door was already unlocked and open anyway.
Eagle was really just talking himself into doing it, regardless of the minimal risks.
Well, it was now or never. If he didn't act now, then he probably wouldn't have another chance to look.
Eagle slipped out of the train car, standing on the edge. He shifted around, closer to the outside of the car.
There was only a moment's hesitation before he leapt from the train car.
Changing forms always felt light and airy; more freeing than he could really explain to anyone. Feathers unfurled from his arms as he shrank and shifted, beak sprouting where his mouth was. A painstaking process, but which only took a fraction of a second.
Eagle soared alongside the train, white wings accented with blue-grey spread out beside him. He wasn't exactly an inconspicuous bird, and so he turned his beak to the sky, wings cutting through the air like nothing as he began to soar higher and higher into the sky.
For a few moments, he simply soared above the train, enjoying the feel of the wind in his feathers. Inside the train, it had been horribly stuffy, the air stagnant and with little motion. He hadn't realized just how much he had missed that feeling.
Once he'd had his fill of the fresh air, Eagle dipped into a low dive, descending towards the front of the train.
Smoke poured from a large metal pipe from the front car of the train, much like how smoke wafted from the chimney above a cottage. It was a fascinating discovery, and he dipped lower to examine it more closely.
The smoke was thick, and it burned, and so Eagle didn't examine it for long before veering away, examining the rest of the front train car, noting its differences from the rest of the train cars.
Eagle was always careful, but sometimes his curiosity got the better of him and things escaped his notice briefly.
The tunnel, though still distant, was very obvious, the moment that he shifted his attention forward again, and he spread his wings out to slow himself. Now seemed like a good time to return to his own train car, before Mole noticed he'd gone on a little expedition.
The front of the train sped along forward ahead of him, and he found himself in a bit of a predicament.
He couldn't remember which train car was the one he had left; he'd closed the door, and all the train cars looked almost identical.
Perhaps this hadn't been as good of an idea as he had originally thought.
Eagle soared alongside the train, searching for any sign of his own compartment before the train went through the tunnel. It would be far more difficult to get back in safely in a dark and enclosed space like that, and...Eagle shook off the thought, his wings beating through the air more urgently.
He shifted his gaze, focusing intently on the windows flying by. At this point, any open window would be acceptable; he could find his train car once he was not at risk of crashing into the cave wall or train car in the tunnel.
Unfortunately, it seemed as if he had been caught red-handed, or red-winged in this case, because the next open window happened to have Mole staring right out of it, right at him. Well, that was awkward.
With the cat being out of the bag now, or...the bird being out of the train car, there was no point in trying to sneak back to his own compartment.
Eagle shifted his direction towards the window and Mole's startled face, bringing his wings closer to himself as he dove for the window.
The window was a little small for an eagle, however, even one as small as Eagle himself, and so the tips of his wings clipped against the edges of the window frame.
The moment he was safely back in the compartment, Eagle returned to his human form, the transformation taking less than a fraction of a second and startling Mole when he was sent crashing into the ground, having not expected Eagle to return to his human form so soon.
Eagle lay sprawled across Mole for a moment, ignoring the stinging pain in his fingers, where his wings had clipped the window as he'd flown in. He was a little dazed from the crash landing, but a moment later, he sat up, peering down at Mole with a somewhat mischievous expression.
There was a moment of silence as Mole stared up at him, expression shifting between shock and anger. Eagle couldn't exactly blame him for being upset, since he hadn't exactly stayed in the compartment like he'd said he would. But he was sure Mole would forgive him for it, and soon enough he'd have more things to worry about.
"What the hell were you thinking?!" Mole finally asked, sitting up and wrapping one arm around Eagle's waist so that he couldn't go too far.
But being seated in Mole's lap was already comfortable enough, and so he just sat there, meeting Mole's gaze without much hesitation. He was fairly certain that he already had Mole wrapped around his finger, and that there was no way he'd stay angry for long.
"We didn't have time to look at the front of the train before we left. I wanted to know how it was powered." Eagle replied, tilting his head as he watched the taller man. "And it's stuffy in these compartments."
Eagle leaned forward, slinging his arms around Mole's neck, their faces only a few inches apart. Never in a million years, would he have thought he'd stick so close to a human, let alone become this attached to one.
Mole let out a long sigh as he gazed at Eagle, his frown shifting to something less grave. "So you took a leap out of the train?"
While Mole had little regard for his own safety at times, it did seem as if maybe Eagle had been a little too reckless. The way Mole put it made him think that maybe it really had been a stupid idea.
"Maybe." Eagle paused as he watched Mole, leaning closer until their noses touched. "You were taking a long time. I wanted to look at the train, but also…"
Mole reached up with his free hand, placing it on Eagle's cheek. He was unable to tear his gaze away in the intensity of Eagle's expression. But before addressing the 'also,' there was something else he needed to say.
"Don't ever do something so stupid again." But all the anger had left his voice, replaced with rare vulnerability. He watched Eagle for a moment longer before speaking again, "also?"
"I wanted to know where we were going. You never told me." Eagle hadn't been able to tell much about where they were headed when he'd been flying above the train; the biggest clue had been the distant scent of salt, and the mountain in which the tunnel they were about to go through had been carved, but that hadn't been enough to tell him anything. What sort of place smelled like salt anyway?
A frown crossed Mole's face as he seemed to wonder about how to answer Eagle's question. Perhaps he'd asked a difficult question, or one that he wasn't yet ready to answer.
"Well...first we're going to the coast. I figured that the sea was something you hadn't seen before. It was supposed to be a surprise." Mole seemed a little upset that the surprise had been ruined so early, if his pouty expression was anything to go by.
"...what?" Eagle stared at him intently, his brow furrowing as he wrapped his mind around what Mole had just revealed to him.
"I figured since you'd never had a chance to leave the forest, I could…" Mole trailed off, clearing his throat and looking away from him. Was that a tinge of red spreading across his cheeks?
Admittedly, Eagle was touched by that kind gesture. No one else had ever done anything like that for him, and he couldn't help but stare at Mole in silence for several moments as he processed that the man really cared so much to do that for him.
His previous restlessness and impatience gone, Eagle leaned the rest of the way forward, pressing his lips against Mole's, his arms tightening around his neck so that he couldn't pull away too quickly. He wanted to savor this moment for as long as he could.
But the moment was short-lived anyway, because a moment later, true to habit, Eagle's stomach growled, and the moment was briefly ruined.
It was Mole that pulled away first, his usual devilish grin having returned to his face. It was that grin that had originally captured Eagle's heart, and every time that Eagle saw it, he felt as if he were falling more and more in love with the man.
What a completely uncharacteristic thing for him to feel, and yet, here he was. And he wouldn't change that for the world.
Mole gazed at Eagle for several moments before letting go of him. He reached over to the seat on the left side of their compartment and grabbed one of the snacks that he'd brought back, waving it in front of his face.
Almost immediately, Eagle's gaze locked onto the food. Some kind of pastry, judging by the sweet smell and flaky texture. He couldn't take his eyes off of it, and his stomach growled once more.
Eagle let go of Mole, snatching the sweet treat from his hands. He took a bite and watched Mole quietly, contemplating his next words.
"So that's where the scent of salt is coming from, isn't it? The sea." He asked finally; he'd heard rumors of the sea being saltwater, but hadn't ever considered that it might be true.
Mole nodded, resting his hand on Eagle's shoulder. He knew a moment later, he'd have to give him another snack to keep his hunger at bay; Eagle's stomach was like a bottomless pit.
Eagle peeked up at Mole again, eyes darting between him and the pastries on the seat. Another kiss from him was tempting, and he couldn't quite decide whether he wanted a kiss or another pastry. How was he supposed to decide between the two best things?
Thankfully, Mole decided for him, leaning in close for another kiss as he reached for a pastry. It was a swift kiss, but with a promise of more later.
A contented sigh left Eagle as he watched Mole, taking the pastry that was offered to him after the kiss.
"And where are we going after we visit the coast?" He asked after he polished off his second pastry in record time.
"Anywhere you want to go."
Eagle supposed that was enough of an answer. After all, it didn't really matter where they went as long as they were together.