The stallion peers into the glassy surface of the lake, the small tide of the water sucking at the feathers around his hooves. If one were to look at him, it would be almost statuesque, his chest barely moving with his breath. It’s hard to tell how long he may have been standing here at the edge of the waters. At some distance his elk companion watches him, a stray summer breeze ruffling the lichen that drips from his bone chalices.
“Gareth…” The bonded companion steps forward, pressing this thoughts gently to the stallion, concern filling his bright green orbs. “I’m sorry. But she is not as you once remember her…” He presses his side to his companion, moss mingling with earthy tones, their reflections rippling in the water.
The stallion does not speak for a long moment, and almost seems to completely disregard the stag at his side. He lets a deep sigh fall from him, as if he has been holding his breath. He closes his amber pools, unable to look at his reflection any longer. He turns from the lakeside and his beloved friend.
“I’m not as she once remembers, either, Noor,” He speaks in a flat affect. He shakes his head, the curled piles of his mane knocking a few thick tresses loose to hang against his neck. He looks back across the lake, a longing in his gaze. “So many things have happened between then and now… and…” He bows his head again, deflating. “And I’m unsure how to continue. I failed her, Noor. I let her leave, and I…”
The stallion grits his teeth and pounds the shoreline with a harsh stomp of his foreleg. He held that spark of anger for only a moment before he let it fizzle out again. Anger was an exhausting emotion. “I don’t know how I can face her now, after all these years.” The words are a broken sound, the lyrics of a man who fears he cannot redeem himself.
I couldn't even begin to put into words everything I had felt the past month. It was good, a kind of good I thought I'd never feel again, it was just so much. Rhone was... a kind man, and I had meant every bit of what I'd said to him, so all I could do was wait, until we met again. To see if he had made true on his promise, if he would try, just a little, to love me back. And then Kodarki... Galielo. Even thinking about it I felt tears well up in my eyes. I spent two years, grieving him, and syrilth, and Liatris and everyone else...
And he was alive, and well, and the same kind man I had know so many years ago. The same man who had tried to train me even when we both knew it was hopeless. The same man who had helped to shelter Cavalier and I in Lyrus when we were driven away from our home. To know he was alive, and that others might be, was the greatest gift anyone could have given me. Last night, in the prairie, was the best thing I ever could have hoped for.
We parted ways reluctantly, with a promise to visit again soon. I had intended then, to go back up to the mountains.
I had overdone it, when I'd seen him. I should have known it then, that the rush of energy would come with a price. Should have expected it. But adrenaline masks foresight, and last night was no exception. I could feel it when I woke in the morning, but thought not much of it, thinking surely it would be kept at bay until we were back safely tucked away in the temple. Picoro had warned me too, of my warming pelt, I had ignored him though, thinking that I felt fine, just fatigued.
As we started up the foothills with one of the monks though I felt myself beginning to tremble. "I'm sorry" I stated, stopping as the monk turned to look at me. I shook my head. "Sorry, to trouble you with a second journey, but this isn't going to happen today. I'll send word later"
"quite alright Luvena."
already I was hardly listening "Yara, Mithra!" I called to the girls up ahead, turning around so they would follow. I could make it as far as the lake. It was a safe place to camp out for the night, with enough water to provide an army.
We made slow progress towards the crescent shaped body of water, the sun already past its peak when we started leaving the foothills. I felt a fool for not heeding Picoros warning, though he didn't say I told you so. Instead he'd only moved from my back to Yaras, lifting some of my burden. It did not take long for me to start falling downhill, my head beginning to thud, my body beginning to ache, hot with fever.
After what felt like hours of pushing through i could see the lake on the horizon. Mithra wasted no time bounding ahead to the water, until she disappeared through some bushes, while i dragged my hooves behind. "we're almost there" Picoro comforted, though I wasn't much listening.
I was hardly paying attention to where I was walking, merely watching the ground underneath my hooves. "Luvena" I heard the sloth saying my name but I didn't look up. "Luvena!" and before I had a chance to respond I felt the front of my face hit something. I stumbled back, lifting my head, bringing on a new onset of thundering. I blinked through bleary eyes, just to see a tall man standing right where I had walked.
"oh gods...I'm so sorry" I rasped through labored breaths. "I wasn't looking... where I was going"
The stag looks at this companion with… not quite pity, he wouldn’t want to call it that. He understood what the stallion felt, to some degree. He, too, felt hurt by Salome’s departure and rather unorthodox return to their lives. He has sometimes wished these last few days that he had not sensed her at all, had not stoked the flames of hope in their shared hearts. Now his beloved friend felt renewed pain, old wounds made fresh again, and the elk felt he had himself to blame for that.
The woodland figure comes forward, his throat humming a tune, deep and rumbling in his chest, the words pressing softly to the stallion’s mind.
“Warm summer breezes to the edge of fall. The locust are calling, calling. Their sweet serenade to the hearts of those fallen. The autumn leaves dance on the bough. And the locust, they rally, they rally. Winter crystalizes on the tips of the pine. And the locust, they survive, oh yes, they survive. Spring pushes forward into summer rains and the locust, oh the locust, at last they come again.”
The brute chuckles, looking back over his shoulder at his companion, speaking softly. “Where on earth did that come from, Noor?” But he knew where. It was an old tune of home. Of perseverance and triumph over immovable elements. It was something he had often hummed to himself in his childhood to warm his heart.
The stag smiles at his friend, and then becomes suddenly alert. An animal crashes through the underbrush ahead of them, the full excitement of a pup come to play. He pricks his ears forward, listening to the world around him, the world he had, foolishly, tuned out to comfort his companion.
The dappled stallion frowns, watching the feline eyes of the elk shift. “What-” He barely has time to get the word out before he hears the frantic pressure of Noor in his mind again.
“Gareth, in front of you!”
The stallion has just the time to swing his head back around and catch the eye of the frail creature that has stumbled into him. She is so small, barely able to stand, and her pelt is hot. Hotter than it should have been, despite the summer sun in full rise. Her gaze is distant as she offers apologies, not watching where she is going, she says.
“That’s alright,” Gareth looks her over quickly. The mare looks like she might fall to pieces at any moment now. “Here, lean against me. Let’s get you to some soft shade…” His words are gentle, no judgement passing his lips. He calls back over his shoulder.
“Noor! Bring us some water from the lake.” The stag bows his head, walking into the water, wading until he is chest deep. He then dunks his head under, scooping the liquid into the cups of his antlers, the moss soaking up the precious fluid. It is done with a practiced motion, as if this very thing has happened many times before.
"Speech" | Noor | @Luvena | Have a locust poem from my ass, and also hopefully some wholesome interaction
01-14-2021, 06:52 PM - This post was last modified: 01-14-2021, 06:53 PM by Gareth
I couldn't believe I'd just run into him, I knew to be more careful, I couldn't afford to cross the wrong person. I got lucky this time. I though for a moment about refusing, I knew nothing of this man, I'd never seen him before, knew nothing of him or his intentions. But it wasn't as if I would get away if he decided to turn anyways, and I was hardly holding myself up at this point.
I couldn't remember the last time I'd pushed through it this long. Since coming to Novus I'd been good at resting whenever it got bad, not pushing until I was on the verge of collapsing. The last time had been in Elysium, just before Vega... When I'd gotten used to it everyday, and smiled through it, if only to keep up a pretense for the boys. Those had not been the brightest days. Of course things weren't all sunshine here either, but at least they were looking up again.
I leaned heavily against him, closing my eyes briefly, without putting much more thought into it, only thankful to not have to hold myself up anymore. I barely heard what he said to what I could only assume was his companion, too focused on the thundering in my head. I ambled with him slowly to the shade. "Thank you." I murmured. "I'm Luvena. Im sorry, to trouble you-" I paused for a moment to catch my breath "And again, for running straight into you."
Yara still followed slowly behind, and Mithra as well had made her way back over to us. Both of them sniffed at the heels of the stranger. Neither of the pups had particularly good manners as of yet. AS they made their way into the trees Picoro clambered off the dogs back into them.
“It’s perfectly alright,” the stallion murmurs. He is careful to not lift his back pillars too high, keenly aware of the curious pups at his heels. His hooves are rather large, and the last thing he wants to do is accidentally step on one of them. They clearly don’t see him as a threat to their shepherd, which is fortunate for him. Though Gareth is quite a looming figure, he has a feeling that the small creatures would give him a run for his money if they suddenly decided that he might not be so friendly.
He takes the weight of the mare effortlessly, moving slowly so as to match her pace and not strain her any more than she already has. “Luvena is a lovely name,” he continues, a smile pulling at the edges of his lips. “You may call me Gareth.”
The stag meets them at the patch of shadow the small collection has managed to find. Thankfully, the ground seems soft here, safe for her to lay down once she is ready. “This is Noor, my companion. He has water for you, when you are able.” He nods towards his friend who keeps a respectable distance. The mare, while having many small companions of her own, should not be overwhelmed by the attention and new activity. The elk has seen what happens when flustered and sick animals are suddenly overcome, and he does not wish to stress her any more than she already is. After all, she still seems a bit tied up in her running into the large stallion, and he does not want to crowd her.
Gareth holds her weight, shifting with her movements and supporting the mare in the best way he can without intruding upon her. Should she move to lay down he would help her to the ground, and if she chose to stay leaning against him, he would stand as a steady rock until her feet came under her again. After all, the woman is but nearly skin and bone. It’s almost frightening, a miracle that she seems able to keep herself upright at all. He wonders briefly what ails her so.
"Speech" | Noor | @Luvena | Sorry I am also garbage
Soon enough the pups lost interest, returning to their mothers side, careful not to trip her up as she stumbled along. They had grown quickly, both coming up almost to her stomach, about where they would stop growing height wise. "Also a lovely name" I murmured in response.
As soon as we stepped into the shade I felt my knees start to buckle, and I followed them down without hesitation, thankful that the man, Gareth, followed swiftly behind. Both the girls curled up into my side, gently pressing into the hollows between my ribs, their noses tucked into their tails. "Oh, it's okay" I rasped. "He can come, thank you, Noor" I dipped my head gently, before laying it on the cool earth. The breeze that came off the lake felt good on my warm skin.
Gareth seemed to know what he was doing, guiding, and moving on to the next thing seamlessly. "Are you a medic?" I asked? "I must look a right mess." I paused to catch my breath again, a feat made easier now that I wasn't trying to hold myself up. "I usually don't let it go this far without finding somewhere to stop." I closed my eyes, blocking out any light that trickled in through the trees. I thought how much a fool I must look, wandering dazed not looking where I was going. Putting myself in a dangerous position in more ways than one.
Picoro slowly came crawling back down from the branches, watching Gareth through slitted eyes as he slowly reach back towards me, lowering himself onto my back, and burrowing into my mane.
He follows her to the ground as she settles, making sure that she’s situated on the softest surface he can before carefully stepping back. Her two pups take his place, nestling into the dens created by her ribs (so thin, so thin) as they must have done countless times before. Her companion, a sloth he thinks, eyes him warily as he moves to nestle into her mane. The creature must be a bonded, similar to his Noor. There is a measure of intelligence in his eyes as he watches the stallion, a sense of protection that he feels mirrors that of his own stag. The pups are companions in how any animal can find a home if they are friendly enough, but the sloth is entirely different. He offers them plenty of space, maneuvering his girth so that Noor can come in close with his water-cupping antlers.
“It’s alright,” he chuckles lightly. “I’ve seen many things, and you don’t look nearly as bad as I’m sure you’re feeling. I’m just glad I happened to be here to help.” He smiles gently, and it almost reaches his eyes, but it is a practiced smile, the one of a professional. Guarded, polite, but not quite invested.
The stag moves to take the place of his draft friend, kneeling down oh so carefully. He spills only a little, but there is plenty of moss and lichen and the majority of the sweet liquid is contained as he settles within her reach. He does not lean out to her immediately, but instead waits for her to indicate her desire for the water. Should she make a motion or mention of it, he would crane his neck and bring the chalice to her. He casts a glance to his stallion friend, his bright eyes concerned.
"She does not look healthy, Gareth. Do you think she should be traveling in this heat? Should we bring her back to the hovel?"
The stallion looks back over the mare, taking in her appearance. Noor was right- she was not healthy, far from it, it would seem. It would be better for her to get out of the heat, and she clearly knew that herself. But would she trust the stranger she just came across? Even if he was a medic, words are simply words, and he was unsure if he could convince her companion that he had the best of intentions. He took a breath, and then shifted his pistons, moving to lay near to her.
“And you are correct, I am. My home is not far from here. If you still have a long way to travel, I would like to offer you shelter, if only until you feel well enough to make the distance.” There is no sense of urgency or pressing obligation in his tone, though he does hope that she takes him up on it. She’s in no condition to traverse anything more than a few feet, and he fears that even after a long rest she may not be able to reach whatever her destination may be if she does not take a full night at least to recover.
She let out a soft huff, remembering the first time in Elysium she had suffered so. Laying under an overhang by the cliffs, suddenly overwhelmed by her own head. It had been Io Kairavi who helped her that day, a woman who would become her friend, and later her sister. A woman she feared she would never meet again, not before joining the stars in a permanent state, one she would never return from. But at least she had found Kodarki once more, been pulled back into his embrace. So perhaps, for even a moment, there was a slight chance of hope.
Had she been in a better state she might have caught the feelingless smile, for it was one she had donned many times herself. But through her clouded eyes it went unnoticed, and she simply smiled her thanks, before stretching her head forward to take a sip of water, not thinking about how strange it was to drink from a creature's antlers.
She strained her ears forward to listen. She nodded hesitantly, turning her head towards Gareth slowly. “I would be...very grateful.” she paused. “But I need a moment first… To catch my breath… at the very least” It was all she could do to keep from wheezing at the moment, while laying down. She closed her eyes once again, happy to filter out the light. “Tell me” she murmured “Have you always been.. In Novus? Or did you travel here… like so many others?”
The stallion was delighted to hear the frail mare accept his offer and a small breath that he was unaware that he had been holding exhaled softly through his nares. She expressed her desire to continue to rest and he bobbed his large head in agreement. “Of course, of course. I was merely offering it as an option once you were ready to move again.” He had a feeling that she was quite used to taking care of herself and wouldn’t be terribly accepting if he pushed too hard to tend to her needs. Despite her frame being quite ill, she clearly had some strength to her. Whether that simply be a mental strength he was unsure, but that type of strength was almost more important than that of the muscle. After all, the body was willing to do amazing and sometimes fantastical things if the mind only willed it. And the same body, regardless of condition, could just as easily snuff out if the one who held it no longer had a will to keep it alive. He’d seen it only a handful of times, and it was a tragic thing. This mare, though, held none of that ache for the void.
He watched as she relaxed into the shade and closed her eyes. His audits perked as she asked after his origins. The way she worded her question made him wonder if she had been traveling from a far off land herself. He shifted slightly, moving so that he might be a bit closer for easier communication. He didn’t want her to strain too much to hear him, and he didn’t want to raise his voice in a way that she might find unpleasant.
“I was born to a small collective in the Arma Mountains. I stayed with my people, learning the ways of our medicine women until I turned three. Shortly after that, I found a place to settle myself closer to those of Caligo’s blessing. I have found that the people here are quite wary of the medics of Terrastella, but are in need of good medicine workers, regardless.”Gareth pauses in his thought for a moment, considering. “I’d like to travel to their hospitals, some day. I think there is much to be learned from their practices.”
He indicated to his elk companion.“Noor, here, has been with me for most of my life. He’s very good at keeping people’s secrets if they choose to confide in him. I’ve found that many people are more comfortable with me working on their wounds, be they of flesh or the mind, if he is with me.”The stallion chuckled.
“Sometimes I think he knows more about my patients than perhaps I do.”
The elk gave Gareth a sly smile, but said nothing to his friend. His words were true, mostly. But that was simply because Gareth was too polite to pester people and push for more information than was freely given. It would be his downfall someday, perhaps. But if such a day came, Noor would be there to help lift the stallion to his feet once again.
Gentle eyes came to rest back on the mare as he spoke.“And what of yourself, Luvena? Have you traveled far to be here?”
Yara and Mithra, having lost interest it what was going on -still pups afterall, barely grown into their fur - had bounded off, rolling through the tall grass once more one after the other. Sometimes she wished they had the same connection she had with Picoro, who at the moment hummed comfortingly in her ears.
She listened in silence, shuddering slightly as a cool breeze whispered off the lake, her ears pricking at mention of the dusk court and the mountains. “Oh, I live in mountains, and in terrastella before that” she murmured. “In the hospitals when I first came to Novus” She continued, answering his later question partially “They’re rather quiet these days… Me and Elena were two of the only medics serving it at the time”
She watched the cervid, thinking how much more thoughtful he seemed to others thean her little creature. She loved him so, and he loved her, but to strangers he did not take kindly. Even now he watched Gareth with piercing eyes.
She nodded weakly in response, thinking back to all the travels she’d been forced to take. “I’ve come a long way from home - from Herstial” she replied quietly. Though most days she was content with her life, every once in a while, she was reminded of how much she missed the willows that had sheltered her for the first five years of her life. “From there, 6 months to elysium, from elysium many more months to Novus. To Terrastella, then to the mountains… Though I’m not sure I’ll stay there much longer” she paused, having caught her breath now, at least a little, the wheeze dying down to a simple rasp.
She pulled herself unsteadily to her feet, head dropping to her chest for a moment. “Girls” she called half heartedly, sending them rushing back out from the grass, skirting around Noor clumsily. “Okay. off we go then”
Thought maybe this would be a cute place to end things. Until Gareth comes to her and they begin their back and forth friendship lol
