[ OOC: Continued From (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=27105.0) ]
@DragonSong
Kahroan, in his mostly human form, gently stirred the pot of rabbit stew hanging over the campfire. He still preferred to cook what he hunted, not particularly enjoying the taste of blood. He was, at least, a decent cook.
"It's almost ready," he declared after tasting it.
River, who normally quite enjoyed her mate's cooking, groaned and buried her face in the crook of her arm where she was already curled up in her bedroll.
"It's supposed to be morning sickness," she whined plaintively, giving him a pitiful look. "I feel deceived. And nauseous."
Her stomach rolled and she groaned again, curling up tighter.
Still, the flickering orange light of the fire was soothing. Or it was, until it suddenly tinged blue. She jerked her head up, surprised by the change, and saw a fist-sized fireball seemed to have split from the campfire and was darting playfully about their heads.
"What in...?"
"You should try to eat. I went light on the seasoning, so it sho--"
Kah was interrupted by the sudden appearance of the strange fireball. He eyed it warily, but something about it was familiar. "I have no idea."
River narrowed her eyes curiously at the thing. "It...sort of looks like..." she began as she started to sit up.
The little ball of light suddenly paused, hovering over them, and Hanako's voice crackled out from it:
"Heya, lovebirds. Been a minute, but I'm hoping this message finds you as sickeningly besotted as ever. I know you're both probably blaming yourselves for leaving back in Zantaric, so first of all: don't. I told you to go, Riv. You've got a pup to think about, it's not just your life on the line.
Second: the sword has Thrax. I think we were wrong. I don't...
The fireball flickered as the person who had left the message seemingly had hesitated.
"I don't think Validor was a demon. Not at first. So I'm going after him, before it turns him, too. I've got a pretty good lead in the Serha Plains.
I'm not asking for your help. I just wanted you two to know what happened to us. Is happening, I guess. Keep safe. Keep your pup safe. And next time you're in Ketra, ask for me at the Randy Peach! I get messages there sometimes.
Catch ya later!"
The fireball disappeared with a soft, anticlimactic pop.
River gaped. "That--she...wh-what just...?"
Kahroan was more worried about the content of the message than the delivery method. He had felt awful for leaving them, and while the wild pair were alive, one of them was in danger of losing his soul. A fresh pang of guilt assaulted him, producing a heavy sigh.
"I know we had to get out of there... for the baby... I just... gods, Riv, Thrax is in the grip of that evil thing."
"I know..." River sighed and dragged a hand down her face. "I know, I just..."
She bit her lip. "She said the plains, right? Maybe...maybe we could..."
She didn't know what they could do--what they should do. She just knew that she hated the idea of leaving the two of them to deal with a demonic sword on their own. But...
She drew her knees up to her chest and rested her forehead on them. "Maybe..." Gods, she hated this, but... "Maybe I should...go back to the pack. For a while. And you could--Kah, I don't want to be apart from you, but I--" She swallowed thickly. "I've already lost one baby because I was too stupid to get myself out of a bad situation. I can't--I can't go through that again..."
Kahroan abandoned the stew to walk over and sit by her. He gently rested his hand on her shoulder. "I don't want to be apart either. I wouldn't feel right leaving you--but they might need help..." He ran his hand through his hair in frustration. "Gods, Riv, I don't know what the right thing to do is."
She shook her head. "I don't either." She leaned into him a bit with a quiet, tired sigh. "If you...took me back to the pack--quickest we could get back would be ten days. Then for you to get back to the plains..."
She sighed again and shook her head. "You should go after her. I'll find a caravan headed north and...start back to the mountains." It was clear in her voice that she didn't like the plan, but she couldn't see a better option.
"You could wait in Arca," he suggested. Clearly, he didn't much like the caravan plan either. Their last one had been attacked after all. "We have enough coin for you to stay at an inn for quite a while."
She nodded; it was certainly a better plan than a caravan—she had just been so concerned with the idea of getting back to family, she hadn't even considered the idea of simply...staying in one place.
"I might be able to find a healer who's dealt with shifter pregnancies there too." It was ostensibly a good thing, but she sounded rather melancholy. She reached up to cup her hand along his jaw and let her head rest on his shoulder. "Just...promise me you'll be careful? Validor was nearly enough to end us..."
He leaned against her, hugging her tenderly with one arm. "I know, my love." He smiled sadly. "I promise I'll come back to you. And, with any luck, Hanako can get through to him before violence is even necessary."
River nodded and leaned into the embrace a little more heavily.
"If you make good time, you should be able to get to the plains in a couple of days. Hopefully you'll be right on Hana's tail." She said exhaled, then tried for a smile and tipped her head up to kiss his cheek. "I'll find an inn in Arca. With any luck, you'll all be back safe in a few days."
Kah kissed her forehead with a contented sound. "Then, I... I'll leave in the morning, if you're sure this is okay with you."
He didn't like leaving her at all, but what sense of honor he had demanded he do something to help them now that River and the baby were safe. He knew she knew that about him—a fact that didn't make the decision any easier. It would be the longest that they had been apart since they met.
"I don't like it," River laughed bitterly, one arm snaking around his waist. "But I know we need to do something. And I know I'd never forgive myself if doing something put this baby in danger. So this is our best choice."
She pulled him into a gentle kiss, then sighed and broke away. "I'll head out for Arca when you leave. Should only take me a day or so from here. And I'll see you soon."
Not as soon as either of them would like, but it would have to do.
[ Continued From (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=27110.0) ]
Days later...
The lovebirds had agreed that after the minimum number of days his trip would take, she would go to the square nearest to the west gate every day at dusk to check if he was back. So that was where the three went first, and right at dusk too.
"Do either of you see her?" Kah asked.
Hana sniffed, looking around, then sneezed. "Damn. Can't catch a scent in this place—much as I love city nightlife, it sure is a pain when I comes to tracking."
"Oh, thank the ancestors!"
River was suddenly there, hurrying across the square to grab and hug first Hana, then Thrax, before holding them both at arm's length to look them over.
"You're alright? You're both alright, gods, I hated just waiting, I was so worried."
She turned to her mate and gathered him close, pulling him down to peck his cheek and then hug him tightly. "You okay?" she asked, looking him over. "Gods, I missed you."
"I'm fine! I'm fine!" the mostly human Kahroan chuckled, kissing her on the forehead. "I missed you too."
"There was hardly even a fight. All I did was punch a gnoll... No, not Thrax."
Thrax smirked. "Not that I didn't have one coming. Hana just got through to me first."
True love's kiss, Kahroan mouthed to River with a mischievous grin.
River quirked an eyebrow, lips twitching on one side.
"I'm just glad the three of you are in one piece," she said with a small laugh. Her expression sobered and she added, "And...the sword?"
Hana glanced at Kahroan's pack. "We...thought it might be best to give it to a professional to transport to Moonspear." Giving herself a little shake, she suddenly grinned and said, "But! I think maybe the four of us deserve a drink or two first. Well, except you, preggers." She slung an arm around River's shoulder. "We'll get ya some fancy cider or something."
"Gods, I could definitely use a drink, and my soul wasn't almost some demon's lunch," Kah chuckled.
Thrax grinned excitedly, bouncing slightly on his feet. "Only two? I could drink a fucking entire barrel right now."
"Shh! No profanity around the baby." Kah half-joked as they walked on.
Hana laughed and rolled her eyes, quickly falling into the point position as she said over her shoulder, "I know this not-a-dive near here, best booze this side of the river."
Chuckling a little at Kah's over-protective joke, River took his hand and tucked herself in against his side as they walked.
"...Babies," she corrected him quietly after a moment. Smiling sheepishly, she continued, "I, ah, wasn't sure how to tell you, but sooner seems better than later, so...I found a healer. Seems pack genes are pretty strong--she thinks it's twins."
"Can we even afford not-a-dive booze?" Thrax smirked. "A demon made me spend all mine."
Kah missed a step and stumbled, throat growing dry. "Twins? As in two? Two babies?" His shock and confusion turned to joy. "We're having twins!"
He hugged her. "Oh my gods, I love you so much right now!"
River yelped, then laughed when he hugged her, returning the embrace tightly. "Twins as in two babies," she confirmed giddily. "And I love you too, and am choosing not to make a joke about how my apparent fertility seems to have impacted your affection," she chuckled teasingly.
Hana, who had paused at the sudden shouting and display of affection, found herself smirking and shaking her head at them. "Well, looks like all the drinks just landed on me, 'cause I can't make the expectant parents pay after finding out the kid's a twofer," she said quietly with a quick wink in Thrax's direction.
Kah looked horrified. "No--I didn't--I... that's not...""
"Relax, Kah, she's teasing you," Thrax laughed.
"Oh." The hunter was just embarrassed now. "Ahem. Forget that ever happened."
"Not a chance." The bard laughed again.
River chuckled and gave her mate another quick peck on the cheek before she released the hug to take his hand.
"Come on then," Hana said cheerfully, starting off again.
She led them to her "not-a-dive", which was actually a fairly respectable sort of tavern a little further into the city, and procured a table near a window before disappearing to the bar to order their first round of drinks.
"So." River took her seat and propped her chin in one hand. "Anyone wanna tell me what actually happened out there?"
Thrax looked down. "By the time she caught up to me, I was so far under the sway of the sword that I couldn't tell friend from foe. I... attacked her. I thought I killed her."
"I found her unconscious, about to be a grass drake's breakfast. I convinced it that it would be mine if it came any closer," Kahroan added.
They continued the story until the point at which they left the Serha on dragonback. "So, yeah, I won't sleep soundly until that thing is out of our hands," Thrax sighed worriedly.
"Which will be soon," Hana said, approaching with a tray of drinks just in time to catch the end of the relation of the tale. She passed mugs around, then set a glass of something that smelled fruity and fizzed gently in front of River before taking her seat. "We figure there must be someone in the city properly equipped to handle it."
The wolf shifter took the drink with a nod of thanks and "mmmm"ed quietly. "We should stop by a temple if we want it to get to Moonspear. I'm sure the clergy have a system in place for this sort of thing..."
Kahroan drank a large swig of ale before answering. "That was pretty much my thinking. None of us are without some dark chapter in our lives for this thing to latch onto."
Thrax scratched his ear in thought. "Sooo... once we get rid of it... what then? Do we find another job together to give the happy couple a last hurrah before River is too babied up to go questing and hope we actually get paid this time?"
"Babied up?" River repeated indignantly, and Hana laughed.
"I mean, we could always take an easy kinda job. Less bandits and monsters, more fetch-and-deliver. Not as much pay, but better for Mama." She patted River's back, earning a quiet, playful growl.
"Then...I dunno." The fox chuckled quietly and swigged her drink. "I don't hang around one group of people so long, usually."
"Me neither." Thrax chuckled. "I'm usually just passing through, taking what work I can get and moving on."
"Neither did I. But then River's pack welcomed me into the family, so maybe it's all about meeting the right people," Kahroan responded thoughtfully.
The bard scratched his ear again. "Have you two ever, y'know, thought about making it official?"
The father-to-be nearly choked on his ale at the unexpected change of topic. "I,, uh--well... err..." He gave River a look that said, "a little help?"
River herself coughed into her glass. She gave Kahroan an equally baffled look.
"We, ah..." She blinked, then shook her head. "My people don't really...do that? Not in the way most folks do, I guess, with like a ceremony and all that. We just sort of..."
She fluttered her hand between herself and Kahroan with a little shrug. "We just...are, I suppose."
Kahroan nodded in agreement. "Mine don't either. Hells, we don't even do monogamy." He chuckled. "Funny that I became a creature known to mate for life, and that that feels more like my nature that what I was born to."
"So, no, we don't need some official religious recognition to tell us what we already know."
Thrax gave Hana a quick look before saying. "My people—Serhan gnolls in general, not just my clan—do marry, but it's more of a... multiple wives sort of thing. The better your status, the more wives. Loss of status is, however, grounds for divorce."
"Hi, for the record: hate that," Hana said with a finger in the air. "I mean, unless it's also reciprocal. Like, if I was a gnoll lady chief I got to have six husbands. Or three husbands and three wives, whatever. In that case I guess, sure." She paused, then mused, "Wait. What do, like, chiefs who don't like women do? Do they get multiple husbands?"
River tried not to chuckle, but the suddenly scholarly focus on the kitsune's face was objectively entertaining.
Thrax was thrown by her question and couldn't, for a long moment, figure out how to answer. "I mean... there was the one female Stormsong chieftain a few generations back and she had husbands. The other situations... I haven't heard of them happening. The strongest are supposed to pass on their strength to the new generation, so I can't say how that would turn out. We don't usually marry for love either."
"Mmm." Hana sipped at her ale and shrugged. "Hey, I can't judge. My mother was literally exiled for marrying the person she loved, so clearly my folks aren't great with this stuff either."
River, who had certainly not heard this before, shot Kahroan a quick, startled "Did you know about this?" look.
Kahroan shook his head rapidly, as if to say, "Hey, don't look at me."
"You two really opened up to each other, didn't you?" he asked, smirking a little.
Thrax rolled his eyes at the look of "I smell love in the air" and said, "We both needed to vent that night in Zantaric. Don't read too much into it, Frosty."
Kah put up his hands. "Alright, alright, I'll stop playing matchmaker."
Hana chuckled and rolled her eyes. River laughed quietly too and leaned in to kiss her mate's cheek.
"One winter with the pack and my mother is already rubbing off on you," she teased lightly.
Kahroan's eyes widened. "Oh gods... is that what's happening?"
Thrax laughed loudly. "Nah. It's just that you're so in love you see it everywhere you look.
"Yeah. That's probably it." The hunter nodded with a phew. "Let's just... get back to the subject of what we do next. I think a light job is a fantastic idea, considering how well our big job panned out."
Hana and River both voiced agreements. "We could probably ask around at the inn where I've been staying," the wolf shifter put in. "After we stop by a temple, of course."
With a rough plan agreed to, the party set out to find a Moon Temple. With the meager reward given to them for turning in the evil weapon, the four had enough coin to last them as they set forth on one last job together.
The job had been to deliver an item to Cerenis for transport on a ship, where someone waited to pay them. It had been easy, only leading to a small skirmish with bandits one morning that ended up running away before Kah even had to resort to turning dragon. All in all, it was wonderfully anticlimactic.
Now, half-dragon Kahroan stopped to stare at something as they left the docks. It was a wanted poster; his wanted poster. "That looks nothing like me. Not even before." He frowned disapprovingly.
"Oh shit." Hana quirked an eyebrow and rocked on her toes fo read over his shoulder. "You been holding out on us, big guy? Why do you have a wanted poster?"
River moved to take her mate's hand, glancing around a little warily.
"Not here," he answered quietly.
Seated in a tavern, he told them what exactly happened when he got himself cursed, about the mysterious trader, and about getting carried away defending himself from muggers. "I ended up hiding in a mill house, terrified and confused with what was happening to me. That was when River found me."
"Awww." Hana smirked, giving the wolf shifter a knowing look. "Just a magnet for trouble you two, huh?"
River rolled her eyes. "Look, there was a blood trail out of town. You're telling me you wouldn't want to find out what was going on?"
"I mean, sure." Hana shrugged. "But I probably wouldn't end up mated to whatever I found."
River huffed. "Well. That part wasn't exactly planned."
"I mean... it was my blood." Kah reached over to touch River's hand. "And I'm thankful every day that she went looking."
Thrax smirked at Hana's comment. "You did chase a possessed gnoll across lower Adela for as many weeks as you knew him. For friendship."
"Hey, no one said I was above chasing tail," Hana joked, but there was just the barest flicker of something like uncertainty behind the playful light in her eyes. He was right—she had done that.
"Well!" Shaking her head quickly, she gave River and Kahroan a quick smile across the table. "Where are you two off to then? Mountains again?"
"That's where we were going before we got your message. So, I assume we still are." Kahroan gave River a questioning, sidelong look. "Unless that's changed."
River sighed with a small, slightly wistful smile. "A part of me thinks one more job wouldn't hurt," she said with a little laugh. "But the sensible side of me thinks...yeah. It's probably time to head back to pack. Get at least somewhat settled before these little ones make an appearance." Her hand fluttered down to rest on her lower belly. Even in the last few weeks, she had started to fill out a little; not much, just enough that it showed occasionally.
Hana matched her smile. "Guess we should send you lot on your way then, huh?"
"Oh! How about a song, for old time's sake?" Thrax grinned eagerly. "Anything you'd like."
Kahroan smiled and looked at his mate. "Well? What do you think?"
River laughed and nodded. "Alright, Thrax. A song sounds nice." She linked her fingers through Kahroan's and smiled up at him. "You have a preference?"
"Know any sappy love songs?" Hana laughed, leaning over to nudge Thrax's shoulder with hers.
Thrax smirked. "I think I know just the one."
"Go for it." Kah nodded, leaning against River.
Thrax scooted his chair back and took up Stormsong. "Bear with me; I haven't gotten around to writing any lyrics yet." With that said, he began to play (https://youtu.be/zOEqiG5vBIQ). It was beautifully romantic for such a rowdy musician.
River leaned into Kahroan as Thrax began to play. Then she got abruptly to her feet and reached out one hand to her mate. "Dance with me," she urged quietly, smiling gently.
Hana curled one tail around into her lap, drawing her opposite leg up onto her chair and letting her head fall back as she closed her eyes and just listened to the music with a small smile on her face.
Kahroan stood up and took her hand in his draconic one. "Are you sure? I've never danced on these feet, and a prayer dance doesn't count," he asked nervously.
"Of course I'm sure." River smiled and pulled him close, swaying gently from side to side to the rhythm of Thrax's music.
Hana found herself watching them with a small, sort of wistful smile. "It's kind of crazy that they found each other, isn't it?" she murmured softly to Thrax.
"It's a remarkable thing when two wandering stars are aligned forever by fate's fickle hand," Thrax answered poetically.
"Ooh, I need to write that down."
Kahroan followed his mate's lead, awkwardly shuffling along with her movements. He narrowly avoided stepping on her foot, and he gave her an embarrassed look. "Sorry I'm not better at this."
River laughed and settled her hands on his waist, spinning them around carelessly. "You're perfect," she told him, beaming, and reached up to draw his face down to hers, nuzzling her nose against his briefly.
"Oooh, aren't you fancy," Hana teased with a little chuckle, leaning over to flick the bard's ear gently.
Kahroan rumbled happily at the tender contact. "This really is a beautiful song. Thrax is more sensitive than he lets on."
Thrax smirked. "I have my moments. Besides, can't be a very good bard without being able to spout poetic nonsense."
"Always the way with his type, isn't it?" River chuckled quietly, glancing to where the other two were sitting and talking quietly, Hana having scooched her chair a little closer to the bard's while he played. Smirking, River looked back to her mate and added meaningfully, "Their type, I suppose."
Hana smiled gently, looking away from Thrax and murmuring, "I wouldn't necessarily call that nonsense..."
"That does seem to be the way." Kah smiled, surreptitiously watching the kitsune most definitely not having any romantic thoughts.
Thrax sighed. "Okay, fine, I'm as romantic at heart as any bard. You happy?" he grudgingly admitted.
"Very," Hana teased, sticking her tongue out at him briefly. "That's what I'm here for: to force you to confront your gooey, squishy center."
As the song started to come to a close, River slowed her swaying and slid her arms up around Kahroan's neck, letting her brow come to rest against his and closing her eyes with a very small sigh.
"Ixnay on the uishqay entercay." Thrax frowned playfully. "Someone might hear you."
Kahroan sighed contentedly, wearing a loving expression. "I love you no less today than the day I fell for you. Perhaps even more."
"Awww, don't worry." Hana grinned and leaned in toward him slightly. "Your secret is safe with me."
River's cheeks colored gently and she tipped her head up to kiss his cheek. "And I you," she answered quietly.
Parting reluctantly, she laced her fingers through his and let her head cock slightly to one side. "C'mon, it's getting late. We should probably see if this place has any rooms available."
Thrax leaned in towards the kitsune as the last note faded. "And your squishy secret is safe with me."
Kahroan grinned, nodding. He cocked his head toward the almost-kissing pair and smirked. He whispered, "Let's not interrupt them."
River lifted a hand to stifle a chuckle and nodded. "I'm sure they'll be able to...find their own accommodations," she agreed quietly, pulling Kahroan gently toward the proprietor so they could inquire about rooms.
"I don't have any squishy secrets," Hana retorted, tails flicking and her grin firmly in place. "I'm an open book. What ya see is what ya get."
"Care to show me everything then?" The bard gave a flirtatious wink before risking a kiss.
Kahroan eagerly followed River, and soon the happy couple disappeared upstairs for the night.
"You've already seen everything--" Hana started to point out with a laugh, but then he was kissing her, and she found she wasn't all that invested in talking anymore. She quickly reached up to slide her fingers into the ruff of fur around his jaw and pulled him closer, her other arm wrapping around his neck.
Two tables away, someone whistled, and a few people laughed good-naturedly, which jarred her enough to break away from the kiss, breathing a little heavier than normal.
"You, ah..." She bit her lip through a grin. "You wanna get out of here?"
Thrax grinned. "You read my mind."
The next morning, the time had come for the two duos to part ways.
Kahroan and Thrax clasped forearms and gave each other a quick goodbye shake. "Try not to get into too much trouble," Kah said.
Thrax chuckled and smirked. "No promises. And good luck on your new adventure."
River and Hana hugged tightly, and when the kitsune pulled back she'd grabbed River's hands. "Promise you'll keep in touch?" She bounced lightly on her heels with a grin. "I do wanna meet these little rascals, when they're up for visitors."
"I promise," River chuckled, at which Hana nodded and released her to allow her to give Thrax a hug. "Take care of yourself, okay?" she said as she pulled back with a small smile.
Hana had moved to give Kahroan a quick hug, gripping his shoulders lightly as she pulled back. "Thanks for keeping an eye out," she said softly. "You're gonna be a great dad."
"I'll do my best." Thrax smiled. "No evil weapons, I promise."
"And I hope those kids of yours are less trouble than I am." He smirked.
Kahroan looked away with an embarrassed chuckle. "Th--thanks." He faced Hana again and smiled. "Keep an eye on him, will you? We both know he's far more sensitive than he wants to admit."
"Oh, I will." Hana smiled and nudged the bard's side with her elbow. For a while, anyway, she thought as she looked at him sidelong.
River smiled at them both, then took her mate's hand and looked up at him. "Well. Guess we should get moving. You promise you'll write?" The last was to Hana and Thrax again.
Hana nodded. "Promise."
Thrax nodded. "Promise."
Kahroan gave them a wave as he and River stepped out of the inn. "Best of luck, you two."
"You too!" The bard turned to Hana once they were gone. "So... what now? Head back towards Adela? Or go somewhere new and exciting for a while?"
"I--"
Hana blinked. "You...want to go somewhere...together?" She said it as though the very idea was a foreign concept. "I-I mean...you want to stay with me?"
"Why not?" Thrax was a little hurt by the assumption that they'd go their separate ways already. "I like you. You like me. And we make a good team. Seems wrong to not see how well we work without the lovebirds around."
"Well, yeah—I-I mean, no—I mean..."
She blinked, then shook her head, ears pressed back to her skull in the way they only did when she was angry, or embarrassed. "I just...people don't usually want to...hang around me. Y'know, when it's...when it's just me...
She gave him a baffled, sheepish look, and tried for a smile. "That—yeah. That sounds good." Quite without her noticing, all three of her tails had started to wag cautiously.
He smiled encouragingly. "You went to great lengths to save me. Anyone would be lucky to have a friend like you watching their back."
Before things could get any mushier, he asked, "So. Adela, here, or somewhere new?"
"Well..." Hana considered that. Then she grinned and pulled a silver coin from the pouch at her hip. "Heads says Adela, tails says we catch the first boat to anywhere," she offered, that playful light back in her eyes.
[Continued here (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=27118.msg395018;topicseen#msg395018) for Kahroan and River]
[ And here (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=27119.0) for Hana and Thrax ]