Looking for answers...

[Anonymous]

Khelira smiled. "Yes, this forest is not the friendliest place in the world. You do not have to do anything for me because I saved your life, but I am glad you're coming with me. I have travelled alone for far too long."

She saw the strange smile on Febwin's face and started to say something about it, but it turned into a wide yawn. "Oh my. That was a signal for sleep if I ever saw one. We will start out as soon as the sun has risen, so I suggest you get some sleep as well. Good night, Febwin." Rolling onto her side, with her wings hanging over the edge of the bed, Khelira closed her eyes and settled down for the night.

[Anonymous]

With Khelira's words, Febwin's smile turned more genuine, but she did give a dismissing nod to the remark about returning the favor.  Khelira might not have caught it due to the yawn, which was, of course, contagious.  Finishing her own yawn, Febwin said, "Just remember that the elder said to go at a casual pace.  There's no use rushing it, but there's no point in waiting, either.  Good night, Khelira."

<center>† ~ ~ † ~ ~ †</center>
Morning brought the promise of a beautiful day in a cloudless sky that could be seen through the occasional breaks in the gently swaying treetop ceiling.  It was very early morning, yet as Khelira and Febwin took the short time needed to pack up everything, they received many visitors, well-wishers, and friendly goodbyes.  Febwin indiscriminately hugged or kissed close to the entire village before they managed to leave the village.  Like instructed, they went south.

[Anonymous]

Khelira was a little taken aback by the number of fauns who came to wish them luck and say goodbye as she and Febwin packed their supplies.  She honestly hadn't expected that many of them to care so much about Febwin. 'Is this what it means to truly belong somewhere, to be loved by so many,' she thought, as she watched Febwin show her affection so freely. A pang of hurt curled up in her chest, but she pushed it away as the faun smiled brightly while suggesting that it was now time to leave.

For the first hour or so, Khelira merely listened to Febwin's chattering voice, unsure of what to say. This world was still so new to her, as if she had been reborn and was discovering things for the first time. After a while, conversation became easier and Khelira asked if Febwin wished to know more about the world outside the forest. "As you know from our talks with Elder yesterday, I have been many places. I could probably answer any question you had."


OOC: Sorry this took so long!

[Anonymous]

At the start of the journey, Febwin just casually chattered on about random, trivial things about her village.  At Khelira's suggestion, Febwin became a little excited.  "Really?  I heard once that our forest is in a country called Serendipity.  That sounds like such a nice way to name a place!  Do you know if it lives up to its name?"  She giggled a bit before putting on a straighter face, "I was wondering, though, what you were doing before you got to this forest?  Where was the last place you visited?"

[Anonymous]

Khelira put up her hands in mock-defense, a smile spreading across her features. "Slow down. One question at a time. About the kingdom, yes it is called Serendipity. Whether or not it lives up to its name, I do not know. I try to stay out of the politics as much as I can. It's more peaceful than Adela, which is just over these mountains to the east, or Connlaoth, which lies for the most part in a valley to the north. But I suppose it must still have its troubles, for all the name suggests."

She didn't answer the other questions right away. She had to think about it for a moment because, truthfully, she didn't pay too much attention to what a particular place was called most of the time. "I came here from the grasslands in the south. That was several weeks ago. It takes quite a while to travel anywhere when you can't ride a horse. And the southern regions are quite dangerous. They have no monarchy and no soldiers to keep the peace. The last place I was before I entered the forest was Cerenis, a town on the edge of the sea. It's a port city and the fisherman bring in most of the fish and other sea creatures that Serendipity eats, which makes them very powerful indeed."

[Anonymous]

"OOOooooh, you've seen the ocean?  What's that like?  And why would you have to be powerful to fish?  The biggest fish I've ever seen was only two feet long.  And what were you doing there, in the grasslands and Cerenis?"  Febwin couldn't be concerned with such trivial things like one question at a time.  There were things to be learned!

ooc: blehg xb, SPS

[Anonymous]

Khelira smiled. "The ocean is...well, it's hard to describe to someone who's never seen it. There are times when the surface of the water has thick foam dotting it, like cream on fresh milk, and when the waves come crashing into the shore..." She sighed. It was a sight she would not soon forget. "And the way it smells is glorious. Briny and fresh, almost as if you were to stick your head in a barrel of fish that had just been salted. I know that doesn't make much sense, but it's the best I can do."

She paused to let Febwin try and form an image of that in her mind. "As for your other questions, the fish that live in the ocean can grow to weigh hundreds of pounds, so the men who catch them have to be quite powerful. But the power I was speaking of is more that they hold a lot of power over Serendipity. If the men of Cerenis were to stop fishing, the rest of the people in Serendipity would be hard put to find another source of fish. You see, most of them don't know how to fish out of the rivers and lakes. Quite a sad sight indeed.

"You ask why I was in the grasslands and Cerenis. I was down in the grasslands because of how warm it stays even in winter. I usually travel south in the winter because I've never much cared for the cold. I enjoy snow sometimes, but it's been quite a while since I've been able to make myself any warmer clothing. I was in Cerenis to gather food for my journey into the forest. Dried fish, fruits, and a few other things I knew I would need."

[Anonymous]

ooc: so so sorry for the being missing thing :(

Febwin did form an image, and it probably wasn't anything close to what the ocean really looked like, but it was still pretty impressive to her.  "It sounds so nice!  Other than the smell part.  That might not be so nice.  Salty fish aren't in my description of nice smells.  Especially if they can get that big!"  She giggled a bit at the thought of fish bigger than people.  Khelira explained what she'd really meant, and Febwin nodded in understanding.  "I see.  It's pretty sad when people forget how to be self sufficient."

They walked on and Khelira told her why she'd been in the grasslands.  "I love the snow.  I don't know about deer fauns, but we goat fauns don't get fazed much by cold temperatures.  We still don't really wear anything when it's cold outside, though I've seen some of us in the village with a scarf or something."  She trudged on a bit, "So that's all you were doing there?  I thought you might have been doing something more interesting, like adventuring, but I guess just because you're not from around here doesn't mean you would have to have been doing anything exciting."  She sounded a little disappointed, having anticipated a good story.

[Anonymous]

ooc: Oh, no problem at all. Your absence actually prompted me to get up off my ass and work on my other characters ^_^

bic:

Khelira frowned slightly.  "That's too bad. I think you would really enjoy the ocean." She smiled at Febwin's understanding of what she had intended on saying about power. "Yes, but that is what happens as the world continues to depend more and more on the monarchies to fix all their problems. The forests are some of the few places where people still rely on only their own skills to keep them alive."

"There are some very old stories about goat fauns and their scarves, from the Old World, I think. Long before the beginning of time as this world knows it," Khelira said, recalling a bit of tale she had overheard some scholars talking about once. "I suppose it would be the same with deer fauns, but I guess my father passed on something that made me intolerant to the cold. That and I never did like the idea of wearing a full pelt as clothing."

As they walked on, and Febwin asked if being in the warmth was really all she had been doing in the grasslands, Khelira folded her wings around her shoulders in a defensive gesture. Now there was a bit of her past that she didn't much feel like sharing anytime soon. "There are many things about my travels I am not ready to share. I was...adventuring, I suppose you could call it, but it is not a nice story."

[Anonymous]

ooc: sweet monkies, i am so sorry if it seems like i was blowing you off.  i have this annoying thing where i'm only allowed one type of artistic muse at a time, and once i started my dA account, my prose muse took a hike.  i should really work on luring her back since i have a need of her again.  i hope we can pick up where we left off?


"Maybe the ocean is better than it sounds," Febwin shrugged.  "Words can only do certain things so much justice."

When she heard Khelira's tone change at the mention of her travels, Febwin quickly apologized, "Oh, I'm sorry!  I didn't think... that...  I didn't think."  Her eyes locked solidly on the ground, "I didn't mean to pry into something you felt uncomfortable about."

[Anonymous]

OOC: No problem, hun. At least the thread didn't completely die!


Khelira frowned at Febwin's apology and sudden discomfort. She hadn't meant to upset her companion. With a sigh, she cupped one hand under Febwin's chin and tilted the faun's head so that she was looking into her eyes. "You meant no harm by it and I am sorry I reacted the way I did. There are just some things about me that are not so innocent and I don't wish to tarnish your beautiful nature with the same stains my own soul carries." Smiling softly, she bent low and kissed Febwin lightly on the cheek, a gesture meant as genuine affection and not just comfort.

[Anonymous]

Febwin froze and blushed slightly at the contact on her chin.  She felt like she should shake her head to disagree with Khelira's own apology, but was unable to when the person who had saved her life just the day before kissed her on the cheek, drawing more color up to the fawn's face.  When Khelira drew away, Febwin began to sputter.  "Nnnnno!  I shouldn't have asked.  You said in the elder's hut that you'd done things you weren't proud of, and I shouldn't have let my curiosity take charge."  She paused and had to turn away to conceal the visible signs that the previous contact had been unexplainably pleasant.

It was then she realized that they had stopped.  She looked over her shoulder shyly, "We should get going again so we don't lose track of time.  The elder was very specific that the best way to measure the distance was to walk for two days at a steady pace."  Again she paused as she, once again, blushed slightly.  She started walking and said with a smile in her voice, "I'm glad you care enough to consider me.  Maybe, if we are together long enough, you will also consider telling me more about yourself.  There may be things I couldn't understand, but no one should have to bear pain alone.  Sharing it is a sign of strength, and the cares of another are sometimes enough to heal rather than cover up."

<center>† ~ ~ † ~ ~ †</center>

Sure enough, the two of them reached the edge of the forest after two days travel.  At that point, they turned west, which took them back into the forest, and went on like that until midday when they stopped for lunch.  Up until then, they'd passed the time with small talk, but Febwin was starting to itch more than ever to learn something more substantial about Khelira.  She thought it awkward and a little bit foreign that she would keep her past secret, but, of course, Khelira certainly was foreign to the ways of Febwin's people.  She couldn't expect an outsider to act the same as the villagers.  Still, the faun wasn't about to break her promise not to prod, and they sat for what she fully expected to be another mostly silent meal.  She couldn't figure out why, but she was strangely drawn to know more about the half gargoyle, and was willing to stick out her stubbornness with a bit of her own.

"A little bit further, and I can start asking the forest spirits for more specific directions," she began.  "That's what the elder said, anyway."  She pulled some basic rations from the pack she carried.

[Anonymous]

Khelira nodded, picking at a strip of dried fish. Her body was telling her to eat, but she couldn't make herself eat. She wasn't entirely sure why, but she felt guilty for how she had responded when all Febwin had done was ask a simple question about her past. The action had been gnawing at her for the past two days, resulting in her not speaking more than a few words to the faun.

She stayed silent for several minutes as she nibbled at some fish and then a bit of bread. When she was done, she pulled her dagger out of its sheath and started tracing little patterns in the surface of the half-rotted tree stump she sat on. "Febwin... I'd like to apologise for what I said to you before. I know I was trying to be polite when I said it, but I really should stop hiding from my past. It's only going to make things worse. And...I noticed how uncomfortable you seemed when I kissed you. I'd like to apologise for that as well. Unless you truly did not mind, it won't happen again."

[Anonymous]

At the sound of her name, Febwin was all ears.  She was eager to hear what Khelira said because she hadn't been saying much, and she wanted to know what her traveling companion had been thinking about.  The faun frowned involuntarily.  "There is nothing to apologise for!  It wasn't my place to ask you before you were ready to speak of those kinds of things.  I don't want you to share anything with me unless you feel you're ready.

At the mention of the other incident, Febwin had to cross her arms over her chest to conceal the repeated reaction to the remembered event.  In fact, Febwin had been thinking about that the most over the last couple days.  She knew it had probably just been an innocent thank you, but still dwelled on it for some reason.  That, and she couldn't help but be perplexed at her reaction to it, even now.  It was a complete mystery to her.  "No!" she blurted loudly before lowering her voice a little embarrassed.  "I-It's okay.  I didn't mind at all.  Please don't apologise for something like that, at the very least.  Really, I did not mind at all."  Her hooved feet pawed the forest turf.  "It's not that I was uncomfortable," she said.  "It was kind of nice, and I hadn't expected it, is all."

Trying desperately to change the subject, whether Khelira would have that or not, Febwin grasped for the easiest out when she noticed the food.  "A-Ar, um, aren''t you hungry?  We can keep going if you don't feel like stopping yet."  It was a weak statement, and could have easily been swatted aside to peel open further the matter at hand.

[Anonymous]

"No, I...I'm not that hungry, but thank you." Khelira tried to smile, but was finding it difficult. Febwin's initial reaction to what she'd said about the kiss, that harsh 'no', hurt even though she had tried to explain it a little better.

She stabbed and poked at the stump for a little while, every so often looking up from under her lashes at Febwin. Such a beautiful creature, so caring and so free-spirited... And then those words came to her mind 'I don't want you to share anything with me unless you feel you're ready.'

Taking a deep breath, Khelira sheathed her dagger and moved from her stump to sit next to Febwin. "Remember when you asked about my past two days ago? I think I should tell you now before we get to the deer faun village, as it's sure to come up then and I don't want it to affect our...friendship, if it can even be called that yet."

[Anonymous]

Febwin drew in a breath of her own when Khelira sat next to her.  "Yes?  I most certainly consider you my friend.  I hope you can consider me one as well."  She clammed up when she realized she was blabbering a bit, "Please, go on.  I want to hear what you have to say.  If it comes down to something that may make me think different of you, I can only say that I think I might admire you too much to let something like that taint what I'd like to think of as a friendship, even if it is only one sided."  She flushed a little when she realized she'd used the word "admire."

[Anonymous]

Khelira nodded and took a deep breath. This wasn't going to be easy at all. "Before I came on this journey, and since my parents were killed, I was a vagabond. I had no home, no respectable occupation... I stole what I needed to survive. True, most of the time, those I stole from were dead by the time I got to them, but I did steal. I even...I killed once when I thought that I was going to be punished for stealing. I felt I had no other choice at the time. When I was down in the grasslands, it was not only for the warmth. I had also taken on a minor job as a sort of bounty hunter. Only, in this case, I was not to bring him back alive."

She paused then and looked down at the ground. In her mind, it would take a miracle for Febwin to still 'admire' her after what she had just said.

[Anonymous]

On the contrary, Febwin could full understand Khelira's story, though she stayed glumly silent as the other spoke.  When she felt like she could offer something, Febwin said, "You had no other way you thought you could get along, right?  Even the gentlest of forest animals must do violent things to protect its life.  You weren't doing anything differently.  You were just following the instincts that said you had to survive any way possible.  You feel different now, don't you?  Like you can find something about yourself that could change your outlook on life?  I'm helping you search so you can find a deeper meaning to your existance than just the fear and uncertainty you spoke of in Elder's hut."  She sighed.  "I can't pretend that what you did wasn't wrong, but that was the past.  As long as you're working to make the future more right for yourself, that's what's best."  Febwin screwed up every ounce of courage she could muster as she looked at Khelira staring dejectedly down at the ground and leaned over.  Heart fluttering and eyes closed tight, she kissed her lightly on the cheek and hugged her from the side.

[Anonymous]

Khelira shivered at Febwin's touch, but leaned into the hug, choking on a sob that was threatening to boil over. She knew somehow that her companion would not mind the tears, but it was still hard for her to cry in front of someone. Especially someone she barely knew.

They stayed like that for a few minutes, silent and just existing in that little moment. But a sudden sound, like a dry branch being stepped on and cracking, startled Khelira to her senses and she jumped up. "Febwin, did you hear that?"

[Anonymous]

@.@  must get back into the groove~


Febwin squeazed Khelira at the hint of a break in composure.  She would have liked her to open up a bit more, but she couldn't really expect someone who barely squeaked out of the stranger category to just break down in her arms.  However, it was just about all she could do to not be thrown to the ground when her traveling companion stood abruptly.  She had, after all, been leaning pretty heavily into the larger woman.

Honestly, Febwin hadn't heard a thing.  She was a bit distracted by the current situation.  Once she'd caught her balance, she glanced around the edges of the clearing to see if she could detect anything.  "What is it?"

ooc: i hope you had an idea for this, cuz i wasn't really expecting an interruption like this quite yet.