Completed Promises Must be Kept

[Aidara]

Sira's comforting words fell to deaf ears. It was a short trip to the ground, a stomach-churning dive from the cliff that took only mere seconds, but for Addy each second could have been a whole bell.

With green eyes focused only on the broken man that lay on the ground beneath them, the little healer waited only until they were close enough to the ground that she wouldn't hurt herself to jump. It wasn't a hard task to slide from Sira's glossy back and she took the fall well, rolling upon impact and keeping her more fragile appendages tucked safely away within her curled form; Addy had watched Sai preform her acrobatic stunts more times than she could possibly count. After a while, it was hard not to learn a thing or two.

Despite her aversion to dirt and other gross things, Addy made no attempt to brush the leaves and other debris from her hair and clothes as the momentum from her jump carried her right to Gwain's side. Rising from her tumble with a fluid grace that was hardly a common sight in the little woman, Addy darted to hover over the man.

"Can you hear me? Gwain? Can you hear me!" The stress in her voice brought the tone up a few octaves to a pitch close to something only dogs could hear. Repulsion threw bile up the back of her throat and it was all she could do not to heave all over the injured man. How could she have done this?

"If you can hear me, nod or wiggle your fingers." It was a foolish request. Gwain was undoubtedly paralized, his arms and legs splayed and twisted at unnatural angles, so much so that even Addy was only able to give the man's injuries a coursory glance or risk losing her lunch. Even Gwain's neck looked to be slightly bent but it was just too hard to tell.

The guilt made it worse. If Addy had had the ability to do so, she would have immediately transferred his pain onto herself. She had caused it, so she deserved it; it was the main reason why she could not properly assess the man's injuries. For poor Gwain, Addy's own guilt would efficiently remove any chance of his survival.

With her heart racing double time and the seconds ticking by and no movement whatsoever from Gwain, Addy had to try again. "Okay. Blink! Blink if you understand me!" His chest was still moving, a fluttering up and down that the healer tried to tell herself was just a trick of her eye, despite her knowing better. At some point, she had fallen to her knees next to his head, her fingers pressed gently against his forehead.

So intent she was on getting a response from the man, her eyes glued to his, it took a gentle touch on her shoulder from Sira to snap Addy out of her trance. Green's flickered to fierce gold, following her lovers gaze back down to Gwain. It was only then that Addy realized the gentle tremble of his chest, the only sign that he was still alive, had stopped.

"No... no no no no...." For a moment, she was absolutely still, her eyes locked on the unmoving chest until it all of a sudden became too much to bear. Stumbling to her feet, Addy couldn't get away from the corpse fast enough.

"Nonononono Sira! NO!" Though she didn't realize she was screaming her denial, Addy was aware of the tears that poured down her cheeks. It was all she could do to stand and tumble the few paces between her and Sira, where she then threw herself into the Kelvic woman's arms. They were silent for a while before Addy was able to manage a few words between sobs.

"Wuh-we killed h-him.... an-an-an-and I didn't d-do anything to s-s-save h-him!"

[Sira]

Sira wrapped her arms around the healer, holding her tight as she sobbed and shuddered into Sira's chest. Her kelvic side wanted to burst into tears and be miserable with her, but as an endal and a wind eagle, Sira was able to stay strong. She knew better than to mourn the death of one lowly man such as was Gwain. Maybe had he been worth two mizas she might have felt differently, but Gwain was scum and his death meant nothing to her. It wasn't the first time Sira had killed a man in anger, though it wasn't like she made a habit of doing it. The last one had been undeserving but this man, Gwain, he deserved to die as far as Sira was concerned. Of course such harsh thoughts likely wouldn't go over too well with Aidara, as unstable as she was at that moment. Sira knew she needed to be soft with the healer to make her feel better. Sira held her, stroking her hair softly as she waited for the tears to stop. Addy managed to squeeze out a few words between sobs and Sira responded first with a gentle kiss to the top of her head. "There was nothing you could have done to save him, Addy. It was too late, Dira was already here." Granted, Sira had no idea if Dira had been there or not. As a wind eagle she had seen gods before, but she was fairly certain that if they didn't want her to see them, she couldn't see them. But she did believe what she said, the man was long gone before Sira and Addy ever reached him. His heart might have been beating, but his life was over the moment Sira kicked him off the cliff. "It's not your fault. I kicked him, Addy. It was me.. don't blame yourself. His death is on me."

[Aidara]

“Get me out of here…”

There was an utter dejection in Addy’s voice when she finally spoke. The pair had sat there next to the corpse for more than a bell before the healer did anything other than cry. It was with a soft rasp that the words came, her shoulders curling in on themselves when she finally pulled herself away from Sira’s chest.

“How is it this always happens?” There had been another death on the pairs hands, the image of a dying chiet as he had been that day Sira found out about her mother super imposed itself on the forest floor next to Gwain. “How many others have we killed? Even indirectly.”

Slowly pushing herself to her feet, Addy turned her back on the dead bodies, brushing bracken from her bryda, reaching to tie her hair into a knot at the top of her head. When there was nothing left to keep her hands busy, she turned back to Sira. “Alright… please… lets go”

When she shifted, Addy clambered onto her back and they took what she thought of as the fly of shame back home. What would be waiting for her when she got there? The healer still thought of herself as an Avora, which she had been for most of her life. It was a hard concept for the woman to grasp, that there wasn’t anyone for her to answer too anymore.

“I think we need to go to the Valintar.” When they had landed in their aerie and Sira shifted back, Addy retrieved her loves clothes and handed them to her wordlessly, gaze focused on something in the distance as she waited for a decision to be made. All the warning signs were there; Sira needed to do something or she was going to lose Addy, if only temporarily, to the grief.

[Sira]

Sira put her clothes on silently. She knew it was pointless to go to the Valintar. She had been an endal for many years, and she knew what would happen. Nothing. They might get a lecture on how they should be more careful and not harm the ones they protect, but really when it all came down to it, he was an Avora and they were Endal. His life mattered less than theirs, and killing him was their right as Endal. Addy did not understand it. She was used to life as an Avora, she was used to consequences for her actions. "Addy.. there is no point. The Valintar will just tell us to go home." Sira knew Aidara would not like it. She wanted to be punished, she wanted for there to be consequences for her actions. Aidara wanted someone to tell her it was not okay, and that she was in trouble, but she was not. The grief of what she had done was hers, to be shared with Sira only because they had both been there. It was something they would have to bear on their own. It was easier for Sira, thanks to her animal instincts, and it was easily justified in her mind why it had to be done. But to Aidara it was not so easy. "Addy, don't do this to yourself. You have saved more people than most Inartans ever will. You save people every day. And unlike the rest of us, you care when you can't." Sira paused, her face twisting into something of a grimace, and she turned away from Aidara, walking toward the edge of the aeire as she looked out over the valley below. The wind tussled her hair for a moment, and she seemed as if she would just ride away with it, but instead she continued, her voice a bit softer and with a hint of shame. "Besides.. it has always been my fault. I put you in situations that you could not control. That chiet.. I was the one who put the knife to his throat. I kicked that man from the cliff, not you. I could have stopped it, but you would never have gone so far. I'm the animal, not you." It was true. Though she was proud of what she was now, for most of her life Sira had been an outcast. The Inarta called her freak, not Wind Eagle. There had been some shame in what she was, though there was pride as well. But for so long Sira tried to be human, and it still pained her when she proved what she really was. But Sira wasn't trying to make Addy pity her, she was just making a point. The kelvic turned back and placed her hands on the healer's shoulders. "Addy, you tried to save him. You couldn't, but you tried, and that means you are a better person than any Endal I know."

[Aidara]

Addy found herself on the plush sofa in their homes common room without really remembering how she had gotten there. Sira had piled furs on top of her as she stared listlessly at the wall. Thinking. Her lover wasn't wrong. She had been the one that initiated all those incidents, but if Addy couldn't help or stop such occurrences... what good was she?

"So I guess we'll just have to get over it then?" Those green eyes flickered back to where Sira sat, anxiously watching the little healer. The concern flickered for only a moment before it was replaced with that calm, strong mask that Addy knew she kept in place for her benefit. With her heart twisting and jumping in her chest, she extended her hands and called Sira too her.

Scooching over on the couch, room was made for the tall redhead. Sira lounged and Addy curled herself against her lovers side, head resting on her shoulder as she reached and pulled a long arm tightly around her. It was almost as if she were a little Yasi, hiding against a parent... except for the way their legs twined together, the wandering of their free hands.

Tilting her head back to look at Sira again, Addy sighed in resignation. "You're right. There is nothing we can do except deal." A moment or two of introflection had shown Addy what she knew all along: Sira was willing to take any fall for her, do anything that was necessary to keep her safe. And that meant lying in her place, telling only half the truth to keep her out of trouble. If Sira was willing to step up and make sacrifices, Addy need to grow up and do the same. There was a fierce little twinkle in her eye that marked a decision made. "We're going to have to come up with a story should anyone dare coming asking around."

It was time to stop being weak.

[Sira]

It was true, Sira would do anything for Aidara. While theirs wasn't the traditional relationship that a kelvic and bondmate shared, all the core parts were there. While Sira often came off as the leader, it was only because she was more experienced. In truth, Sira would do anything Aidara asked and she would do anything to keep her safe, no matter what that meant. If Aidara had truly demanded they go to the Valintar, then Sira would have went, but part of protecting the healer meant teaching her what Sira already knew. They were endal, and Addy had to learn that. Sira was glad when Addy finally called her over, happily wrapping her arms around the woman and holding her tight. Finally Addy seemed to accept the truth, that there was nothing they could do. What was done was done. Addy wanted to come up with a story; Sira felt the truth would suffice. "We tell them what happened. He tried to force himself on you, and he tried to hurt me. The rest is just details." Sira knew Addy would probably want more than that. She might even want to come up with an entirely different story, and if she did Sira wouldn't object. As long as Addy was trying to move on, she would go along with it. She would play along with whatever story Addy wanted to make, but in her mind, what she had said was exactly what happened. The details didn't really matter to the kelvic, who was thinking more like a wind eagle protecting her clutch. The man had threatened her child and her mate, and he had been dealt with. True.. they might have taken things too far, but that was a human thought. Any other wind eagle would have killed him just as quickly. "But.. I will say whatever you want to say. Nobody has to know the truth if you don't think they should."

[Aidara]

The pair spent a few moments in each other’s arms. Addy liked to think that she was also comforting Sira but they both knew that neither one was going to let go until the little healer stopped shaking. Once her breath had lost its gasping quality and her hands had ceased to tremble, Addy stepped back from Sira and rubbed a hand across her face, feeling even wearier.

“You’re right.” She said, for probably the tenth time in that afternoon alone. The repetition of the phrase made the little healer smile, if only slightly. Sira would have loved hearing those two words in any other circumstance. “Lets get this over with.”

Walking slowly hand in hand down the corridor that lead from the aeries, Addy tried to keep her attention solely on putting one foot in front of the other. Guilt still lay heavily on her conscious, making it seem to the woman as if every glance the pair received was full of accusation. In reality, no one probably even noticed that the man was gone. He was a lowlife and hardly anyone liked him anyway. Another pang as those thoughts chased each other through Addy’s mind. He was dead. How could she think such a thing?

Yes, he was dead, but he had also tried to harm her. AND Sira. AND their baby.

Addy stopped dead in the middle of the hallway, jerking Sira back around when their arms reached their full extent and the other woman couldn’t walk away without letting go of her hand. The little healer just stood there, a dumbstruck look on her face, her green eyes wide.

“He tried to hurt you.” And just like that, Addy’s emotions went full circle. The guilt was quickly burned away by the resurfacing anger that brought a rosy flush to her cheeks. It was true that the woman blanched at hurting a fly, but when it came to her loved ones, there was a priority.

“I wish it didn’t have to come to that.” Addy looked Sira directly in the eyes now, her own bright green and flashing with renewed determination. “But nobody hurts my family.” And though it had taken her bells, the little healer realized that was all the justification she needed. With a firm nod, Addy stepped back to Sira’s side, a small smile dancing across her lips. Everything was going to be okay.

“You are safe. The baby is safe. Now lets go talk to the Valintar.”

[Gossamer]

. Character: Aidara Experience: +3 Planning, +3 Persuasion, +1 Diplomacy, +3 Brawling +3 Leadership, +2 Riding (Eagle), +1 Acrobatics, +2 Torture, +1 Meditation Lore: Worrying Oneself Into A Frenzy, Sira: Injured, Calming A Bondmate, Being Sexually Assaulted, Rage At An Attacker, Planning Revenge, Graceful and Graceless Dismounts, Sharing Prey With A Bondmate, Assisting In Killing A Man In Cold Blood, Attempting To Revive The Departed, Bossing Sira, Accepting One’s Actions, Doing The Right Thing Character: Sira Experience: +1 Subterfuge, +3 Brawling, +2 Leadership, +3 Persuasion, + 2 Observation, +1 Hunting, +2 Torture, +2 Logic, Lore: Mascarading As A Dek, Getting A Kick To The Face, Panicking to a Bondmate, Being Pregnant Is No Fun, Whining To Aidara, Calming a Bondmate, Using The Eagle Network To Find Prey (People), Sharing Prey With A Bondmate, Premeditated Murder, Doing The Right Thing Additional Note: Great thread you two cold blooded killers. I like how you decided against doing it, Aidara, after it was done. Thankfully Sira is pragmatic and level headed - except when she thinks her baby is endangered. I look forward to reading more from you two. Remember to contact me if you have an issue with the grading! .