FREAKIN' FINALLY. [Bluuuuue!]

[Rhindeer]

Hatame's hand slid from her cheek and over her ear, fingers sliding into her hair to lightly cup the back of her neck. It was an automatic gesture, done without even thinking, and though it had been years since he'd touched her like this--gods, had it really?--and though he was still angry with her, it came to him like no time had passed at all and felt familiar as ever. He swallowed hard past a tight lump in his throat as his thumb lightly moved over her jaw.

Godsdammit...he needed to stop now...

"Yeah," he agreed with a sad grin, leaning his head against hers, black and white hair mixing with her silver. "You do."

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes when they started to burn. "It's not too late, you know."

[Blue]

Sakkata shivered almost violently, sharp teeth clenched so tight as to be painful. His words drew out more despair from wherever such a dark emotion lurked, and yet his soft touches made her want to sob for a different reason. What was she doing. Why was it Hatame always had this...this way of making her feel all these awkward emotions. Things she'd never once stumbled across before teaming up with him all those years ago.

His words offered up such a tempting option, but she...didn't even quite know what they meant. Not too late? For what? For them? For her? For their daughter? What should she do...?
What did she want to do?
She quivered again, sharply, and her tears were abrupt and heavy on his dirt stained neck.

"I love you Hatame. I don't know what to do."

[Rhindeer]

Hatame sucked in a shuddering breath at those words, his hands now in Sakkata's hair and traveling down her back in soft, soothing motions--as though trying to comfort her now as he had in the past. It was kind of funny, too, how much things had changed, and yet how little they had, too; it had taken so long before he could even touch her hair at all, and despite the years that had passed, here he was, touching it now.

Time had passed, but trust had not faded.

Neither had love.

He drew her to him suddenly in a tight embrace, chin resting on the top of her head and arms around her. "And I, you," he said quietly, voice thick. "I never stopped loving you, Sakki. And gods help me, I tried. But I couldn't stop looking and...and even now I..."

He pressed his lips to her forehead and held her all the tighter as though afraid of letting her go.

"I love you. And I'll..." This part was hard to say. "I'll do whatever you need me to do. But I'm gonna say it again--it's not too late. We can...we can figure things out."

[Blue]

Dammit dammit dammit...
What are you doing Sakkata??
Sitting here crumpled and crying...what is wrong with you??
You have to be strong!
You don't have time to be weak like this!
If you're weak, you'll die.
If you're weak...they will die.
If you can't protect them...
It's not just you. Hatame. Raama. Even that Yarra.
You have to be strong.
Get up!
You have to be strong!!

She sniffled softly, nuzzling into his neck for a moment. Her trembling was slowly abating with the soothing movement of his hands. Damn. Damn you Hatame...seriously, she had never shown somebody such a sorry picture as she was right now. It was like she couldn't keep it together around him...gods, was this really part of this 'love' thing??
"...I..."
She didn't want to leave him again. She just didn't have it in her to do it...it might really destroy what was left of her emotions. No, she couldn't, not again...
She had to be...

She froze momentarily, hearing familiar footsteps. She didn't have any more time to wallow in these damnable emotions. She had to suck it all up, steel herself, and move forward. There were no other options.
Abruptly she stood up, her eyes rimmed slightly with red as she looked down at Hatame.
"Since you offered, I want you to get up and get yourself washed and clothed."

"Momma! We're back!"
The pit-pat of her bare blue feet slowed somewhat as she spotted Hatame as well as the carnage that was their camp ground. Her mom had always said that they could be attacked...had that happened?? Was that guy an enemy??
She stopped in front of Yarra, almost as if her tiny frame would protect him; though truthfully, her magic was already far stronger than most.
"Raama, go fetch Brother for me please. Don't mind all this, I lost my temper. Ah, Yarra, can you finish packing up the cart for me?"
She ordered them about briskly, but without any bite to it - she was being orderly, not mean.
Raama tilted her head heavily for a moment, eyeballing Hatame with a bright green gaze.
"...Okay!"
Seemed she had accepted her mom's words, and she trotted off to fetch the Ox some yards away.

Sakkata gave Yarra a 'don't ask questions' look...and then promptly turned that same look onto Hatame.
"We'll talk once you're actually presentable. I'll...I'll properly...introduce you."

[Rhindeer]

"Momma! We're back!"

The words pierced him like a lance through the gut and for several seconds he couldn't breathe. There she was, Raama. His...daughter.

Blue skin, little wings, traits of Sakkata and himself all rolled up into one little person. She was unmistakably theirs, and gods she was adorable--and here he was, kneeling on the ground, dirty and rumpled with his eyes wet with tears. He couldn't blame her for standing in front of the other guy, considering he looked like a crazy person right--wait. Other guy?

He glanced up at the other drygan, who was glowering at him, tail tip twitching. That must be the drygan Sakkata had mentioned, and though she'd prepared him for this, the sight still put him on edge. They hadn't encountered a single drygan before that hadn't wanted to kill Sakkata--except Terri, he remembered with a pang of hurt, but she had been different. Seeing a young male drygan there, though, remembering the horrors Torr had put Sakkata though, and having him so near his daughter--his daughter--filled him with an unexpected surge of anger that he had to clamp down on fast before it showed.

He didn't trust him. And he wasn't comfortable with his presence. Other drygans only wanted to use Sakkata.

Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he climbed to his feet and brushed off his knees, going for nonchalance. For a second, he and the drygan held each others' gazes, but at Sakkata's words, the male nodded, bowed--actually bowed!--and headed to the wagon with Raama.

Once they were gone, Hatame let his breath out in a sharp whoosh and let his shoulders slouch. His mouth was burning with questions, but he swallowed them back. Wash. Get presentable. Right.

Somehow, he managed to crack a wry smile. "Bossy as always, I see," he said, and snapped a little salute. "Yes ma'am! I'll just, uh, head over to..." He glanced around, then gave Sakkata a puzzled look. "Uh, got any spare clothes? Or, you know...know a good place to go wash up?"

[Blue]

To his quippy words, Sakkata simply flicked her tail none too gently at the ground, her arms crossed. Still, as before, there was no thrumming of her usual violent anger. As she was rebuilding herself after the teary fiasco, it was becoming more and more evident that she had changed during all this time. It was written in her body language. She was far more relaxed, more...gentle was perhaps not quite the right word, but it was close. Sighing, she rubbed at her eyes and then motioned roughly to her right.
"There's a bathhouse down the road a ways. I'll find some clothes and bring them to you there. Now hurry up, before Raama gets this pitiful image of you stuck in her head!"
She looked as if she was about to shoo him, but in the end she actually pushed him a good few steps in the right direction. Whirling about, she made her way with a determined face to meet up with Yarra and Raama.

This was going to be...awkward.

"Raama, get Brother yoked up to the cart for me. Yarra."
She beckoned to the other Drygan and sought to lead him a few yards away, even as Raama blinked in their general direction with curious eyes. But she knew better than to let curiosity get the better of her - after all, her mom didn't usually keep secrets. Even if she wasn't allowed to know or do something at a particular moment, her mom was good at following through a short time later.

"Yarra, I am telling you this first so that I am not surprising both you and Raama at the same time. That man before is...is Raama's father. He's a gryphon. I don't...know...exactly how this will go. You don't need to go out of your way to say anything, though Raama might talk to you about it later. I just...wanted to give you an early warning."
She sighed again.
"Now to get that idiot some clothes..."

[Rhindeer]

Pushed along in the right direction, Hatame paused only to give Sakkata a final fleeting look before he headed off toward the alleged bathhouse. It was difficult to leave--only because he was kind of afraid that if he did, he'd lose her all over again.

But what choice did he have but to take a chance? With a deep breath and squared shoulders, he headed down the road to the bathhouse and used up most of the money he had left to get inside.

The bathhouse wasn't nearly so fancy as the one he and Sakkata had visited together, but hot water was hot water and Hatame welcomed it. It had been a while since he'd been clean...ugh, gods, he really had let himself go, hadn't he? What a great first impression after all those years. Like, hey honey! It's me! I see you've made a pretty good life for yourself over the years. You look all successful. And things. Me? Uh, oh, you know...regressing back into old habits? Picked up thieving again? Neglected grooming some. Yeah, awkward.

At the edge of the tub, he peeled off his clothes and sank into the steaming water with a sigh, then dunked his head under the water. He was a little thinner now than he had been when he'd last been with Sakkata, and his hair was tangled and he dreaded dealing with it, but oh well. He finger combed the wet strands as best as he could while he soaked, and that was fine, because it gave him something to do. For all that the hot water soothed his muscles, the bath wasn't as relaxing as it should have been; he couldn't stop thinking about Sakkata and Raama, or stop fretting that Sakkata might not come back.


Yarra had been arranging and organizing things inside the cart--a task he didn't mind, because it was for The Chosen! Who else got to pack up The Chosen's cart?--when Sakkata called to him. Blinking, he peered at her from over his shoulder, tail swishing back and forth, and then nodded, scooted to the cart's edge, and hopped down.

He'd had a hunch that what she wanted had something to do with that stranger, but...that...was not what he had expected. And for a moment he simply stared at her, eyes wide.

The Chose...

Had mated...

With a gryphon?

That explained Raama's wings, but...

What?

But he reined himself in, cleared his throat, and nodded. "I...oh. Oh, yes, of course, My Lady," he said with a deep bow from his waist. "I...I will do my best! For Raama. And if there's anything My Lady needs from me...?"

Deep down, he was intensely curiously as to what had happened and why that man was showing up now--and whether The Chosen needed his protection or intervention in the matter.

[Blue]

Sakkata was already lost in thought when Yarra spoke. Sometimes it caught her off guard, that polite way in which he spoke. She wasn't exactly used to being...was it revered? Respected? Hm...well, she was still torn as to whether or not to ask Yarra to stop. Ultimately, if he was most comfortable addressing her that way, then it was alright. A half smile almost threatened her lips when she thought of how Hatame would react to it.
"Once the cart is packed up, take it up to the start of the trail home please. I'll be leaving Raama with you while I go and collect Hatame."
She paused awkwardly for a moment, not entirely sure what she should say to convey her relief at his...his presence? His help? The fact he'd taken what she'd told him in stride without saying anything particularly tactless? Heh...
"Thank you."
She nodded at him, and then strode quietly over to Raama.
"Is something wrong momma?"
"No, not exactly. I'm leaving you with Yarra for a bit again, but then I have someone to introduce you to, alright?"
Though Raama tilted her head curiously at first, she nodded quickly thereafter. It was exciting to meet new people! She clamored up into the cart as Sakkata left, and then wiggled on her seat as she waved at Yarra with both arms and a wide grin.

Sakkata didn't have too much trouble hunting down some clothes that ought to fit Hatame, and then made her way down to the bathhouse. It took only a bit of questioning to find out where Hatame's bath was located, and soon enough she was raking her knuckles against the wall. Standing in the doorway, she lifted up a pile of clothes.
"Get out before you turn into a prune."

[Rhindeer]

As soon as Sakkata was gone, Yarra turned and headed back for the cart, grinning and waving back at Raama. The kid was adorable, and while he had never imagined that he would ever be in this sort of a role, ever...he had taken to it surprisingly naturally. Children were easy; it was the adults that could be intimidating, but traveling with Sakkata and Raama had helped ease both his own loneliness, and his anxiety when it came to other people. He had a job, he had a role, and he was comfortable with having a place to fit in.

Besides, what job could be more honorable than caring for The Chosen's child? To be trusted with such a position...

Leaving Sakkata to handle the business that was currently not his business, he went right back to packing up the cart. Only a few minutes more, and he would be ready to drive it up the road.


Hatame had scrubbed himself clean and was in the middle of rinsing off all the soap when a knock on the wall got his attention. Jolting, he looked--and couldn't help the obvious sigh of relief, the way his shoulders relaxed and his back lost its tension. He smiled up at her, unabashed and perfectly comfortable in his nudity, and it was obvious what the smile meant: you came back.

Instead, though, he just waved, waggled his eyebrows, and said, "Hey there."

Whipping his long hair back, sending a spray of water Sakkata's way, he rose from the tub and stood there, dripping water. "Alright, alright, I'm out!"

[Blue]

Sakkata tensed up at that smile. Though ordinarily a happy expression, in this context it did little but lance through her heart. Somehow, she managed not to let it all flicker across her face.
Luckily Hatame's usual demeanor arrived, and she gave him a flat look as the water sprayed across the floor. Honestly, just what was he trying to flaunt??
Taking a few steps into the room, she glanced around with sharp amber eyes, before spotting a towel. With a strong flick of her tail, she sent it rather accurately at Hatame's head.
Then, standing there, she took a moment to actually stare at him, naked and all.
Surprisingly, she didn't even blush purple under that blue skin.

"We clearly need to feed you. Honestly, you look almost as bad as Yarra did." She snorted as she thought back on the lanky Drygan when they first ran across him. Now that he got three square meals a day, he'd actually gained some muscle and was looking like a decent Drygan ought to. She then lifted the bundle of clothes in her hand.
"These should fit."

[Rhindeer]

Hatame's posturing came to an abrupt end when the towel smacked him squarely in the face. He let out a startled oof! and clawed it free, then laughed at Sakkata and stuck his tongue out at her. Just like old times, right? Yeah. Totally. For now, this felt good, familiar (little jabs and all!), and he latched onto it hard and fought to maintain the normalcy of it all, even though his heart ached beneath it. It was weird how easy it was to fall back into old patterns...even if it did feel a little forced.

He had started to towel off when Sakkata commented not only on his weight (or lack of), but mentioned...him.

Instantly, he stiffened, the smile fading from his face. "Yarra. That's the drygan, isn't it," he said. Though it was phrased as a question, it was more a flat statement.

With a slight huff, he started to dry off his hair. "So. How did it happen that you started traveling with a drygan? After, you know, all the ones that tried to kill you."

[Blue]

At first, his obvious response to the mention of Yarra caused a spike of irritation to run up her spine. His commentary only made her annoyance worse, and for a brief moment it overwhelmed her and her face twisted into a snarl.
Almost as quickly, however, and Sakkata displayed something she had never been good at back when Hatame was with her.
She reigned in her anger.

Sighing slightly, she reached up and pulled at the braid with Hatame's gift still interlaced within it.
"Honestly. Yes, Yarra is the Drygan you saw. Obviously I would not allow him to travel with us if he were a threat. Much like Terri was, he is more...reverent of the Chosen. I suppose we...adopted him, of a sort. Raama enjoys the added company, and he has become much like a nanny. If anything were to happen, it would be Raama defending him, not the other way around."
With a snort, she strode up and pushed the clothes into Hatame's stomach.
"I appreciate your concern, Hatame. Just focus on Raama for now."

[Rhindeer]

Here it came. That familiar Sakki rage, perhaps complete with fire and sulfur. But then, just as soon as the snarl manifested, something else followed--something that was entirely new to him.

She let it go.

It was such an unexpected change that for a moment he thought he may have imagined her snarl to begin with, but nope. This was...this was her controlling herself.

And come to think of it, this wasn't the first time since he'd found her that he'd witnessed this strange shift, either.

He let out a breath and relaxed his shoulders. Strange change or not, it was a nice one. He didn't want this to turn into an argument.

Rubbing his face, Hatame shook his head. "Sakki, it's not that I think you'd do anything you thought would be unsafe, it's just..." He trailed off, the thought of Terri bringing with it a little stab of pain. It had been a long time since he'd heard her name mentioned out loud. "Just, gotta be careful, is all. I mean, I know all the others after you kinda weren't subtle or clever about it, but..." He shrugged and let his arms drop.

"But if you think he's like Terri, I guess...we'll see."

He pointedly avoided commenting on the fact that this drygan was Raama's nanny and grabbed the clothes from Sakkata so he could begin yanking them on. No. That was a subject he wanted to avoid, because he wasn't sure how to articulate the pain and jealousy that came from knowing some drygan had been part of Raama's life, while he never had.

...Shit. He couldn't not comment.

He popped his head through the tunic and looked at Sakkata sidelong. "Nanny, huh?" he said, and began to lace his breeches. "Just nanny. That's how she sees him, as...just a nanny."

[Blue]

She gave Hatame a bit of a sharp look at his continued worry. It wasn't entirely unfounded but, it was frustrating for him to distrust her on this so stubbornly.
"Attempt to trust my judgment on this one thing, Hatame."
There was a certain degree of weariness in her voice when she spoke, but she chose to let the subject drop for now. Hatame would have to see for himself...though if she knew him half as well as she thought she did, he'd probably cause a bit of friction with the other Drygan at least once.
Oy.

She stepped back as he dressed, arms again crossing over her chest in a very familiar stance. Although it irritated her a certain amount that he couldn't seem to drop the Yarra angle, she also had an idea as to why. All the same, she wasn't about to feed into his insecurities.
"Actually, I doubt Raama even understands that concept. Much like Brother, Yarra is another large creature that needs looking after, in her opinion. I don't think he's noticed it yet, but she treats him the same as that ox. Though she considers them both like family, I suppose it's perhaps closer to...a pet?"
The thought actually made her smirk in amusement. She probably...ought not to tell Yarra about that. Eventually Raama would grow up enough to understand the difference between an ox and a man, heh.

[Rhindeer]

A...a pet?

It was such an unexpected answer that Hatame snorted with laughter. Of all the things Sakkata could have told him, that allayed his fears better than anything else. Alright. So she saw him as a pet and not as a father figure, as he'd feared.

Holding up his hands (which made his breeches fall back around his ankles, as he hadn't finished lacing them), Hatame shook his head. "Ahaha, alright, alright, good to know! A pet, huh? Good to know!"

Pulling his breeches back up, he finished tying the laces and then paused, another thought striking him.

"I mean, uh...sorry. I shouldn't laugh. I just..." He rubbed at his face. "I guess it's kinda selfish. I haven't been in her life at all, so I don't...I don't really have the right to be all, hey kid! I'm your dad! Start acting like I'm your dad even though you don't even know me? And forget about any other father-types you may have?"

[Blue]

Sakkata snorted as Hatame inadvertently flashed her again in his surprise, but at least he had the good grace to properly lace them up the second time. It seemed her assessment of their relationship had put Hatame at ease, which was good, because his brooding self was damned annoying to deal with.

Hatame's next words set her teeth painfully, and she turned her head away.
"That clearly wasn't your choice."
He hadn't been part of Raama's life due to her own decisions, not his. So it wasn't very selfish a thought at all, for he'd never had an opportunity to decline or accept it in the first place.
Back to feeling rather atrocious yet again, she flicked her tail before speaking again.
"She's grown up fatherless thus far. Not entirely unusual for Drygan. Honestly, our kind are incredibly self-sufficient, even from a young age. Many do not have the luxury of parents."
She sighed, rubbing at her nose. These were not the sorts of conversations she wanted to be having right before introducing the two of them. Just thinking about having to do so was churning her stomach.  She didn't even know why she was so nervous and uncertain about it.
She could do little about the outcome now, at any rate.
"Are you ready yet?"

[Rhindeer]

Hatame nodded at her words, acknowledging then and accepting them. That was...true. And he remembered Sakkata talking about that long ago, that many drygans didn't even have parents. Of course, that wasn't the issue here, but...he would let it go. While he made other questions, they would have to wait. Dealing with too much heavy stuff all at once would go over well for neither of them.

And he wanted to meet Raama. Meet her properly, that is.

He finger combed his wet hair again, trying to tame it, and took a deep breath. Was he ready yet? Haha.

"I...I guess I'm ready, yeah. Bloody terrified, but ready enough," he answered after a moment, and took a deep breath. Looking at Sakkata, he played with a lock of hair. "Do you, uh, do you think she'll like me?"

[Blue]

That question knocked her sideways, and a lot of different emotions fought for a place on her face. Finally she managed to force them down, though she was almost unnaturally still for a long moment, arms crossed tightly. She stared at Hatame, her expression unreadable in those amber eyes.
She didn't intend to make him nervous but, she wanted to answer him honestly. Would Raama like him? It wasn't as though she could say for certain but...she knew both of them well enough to make a good guess at it.

Finally, a sigh escaped her.
"I think so, yes."
Turning about suddenly, she strode off, but not before her tail flicked out and smacked Hatame in the thigh.
"Try to behave yourself."

[Rhindeer]

That was the best answer he could hope for, and though it was completely irrational, because only time and meeting each other would tell if she'd even like him, Sakkata's reassurance was comforting. It would at the very least help him through their meeting.

Just when he started to relax, Sakkata turned and smacked him with her tail, and he yelped and slapped a hand over the spot. "Ow! Yeesh! Well, I see you haven't changed one bit! Still with the tail whipping."

Catching up to her to walk beside her, he added with a playful wink, "Not that I ever minded. But hey, what do you mean me behave myself, miss instigator? I am a saint."

[Blue]

At that, Sakkata snorted as a half smirk creeped onto her face.
"If you were a saint, the churches would burst into flame."
Hiding her own uncertainty, she led Hatame with determined strides down the main road, and then onto a side path that began to slope upward into the treeline rather quickly.
In a small clearing not far from there, the cart, ox, and two Drygan awaited their arrival.

Only then did Sakkata visibly slow down.
Whatever may happen, it was time...
Honestly, why was she so nervous??

Raama eagerly bounced down off the seat of the cart, dashing up to them on feet very similar to Sakkata's own.
"Hi momma!"
Stopping short of reaching them, she turned her large child eyes up to Hatame curiously, and then abruptly dove into her mom as if to hide against her. Face still pressed into her mother's side, she shifted her face to glance up at him again.
"Raama, this is who I wanted to introduce you to."
She idly stroked her daughter's hair, but it seemed the little girl was still feeling somewhat shy, though she waved a little at Hatame.
Sakkata faultered for half a second, before taking in a deep steadying breath.
"This is Hatame. He's...my mate, which means he's your father. You got your wings from him."

That was enough to get a few blinks of surprise from the girl, who slowly leaned away from her mom to stare with a somewhat open mouth. It was hard to tell how much of that she was understanding though, having never had a 'father'. She looked him over for wings, leaning even further to one side as if to see behind him.
"Wings...?" She mumbled, sounding somewhat skeptical.
"Yes. You have your blue skin and your tail from me, your mother. You have your wings and green eyes from him, your father."
Though Raama looked at Sakkata as she spoke, her stare returned to Hatame right after, blinking up at him slowly.