Timely Discovery (Kash, Van)

[Khiara]

If Khiara had found herself blushing before, she was almost dying now. Bright scarlet right down onto her chest, and too embarrassed to meet Kashik's eyes, the vantha mumbled a string of curses in vani.

"Oh my Goddess, Kashik!" Still, she smiled, even giggled along with the woman. Images and thoughts entered her mind, mostly imagined or gleaned from fireside stories by the older women. It thrilled, terrified and excited the young woman. And the drykas beside her was no help.

As Kashik stumbled, Khiara burst out laughing, holding the woman with her entwined arm and trying not to let them both go down. Laughing so much, she could barely stand straight, the young brunette took a deep breath and giggled.

"And that is what you get for teasing!" Still laughing, she sighed.

"I only hope I can...return the favour for him. Goddess, what am I saying! I can't continue this conversation. My face feels like a beetroot."

[Kashik]

"You are a rather alarming shade of red," Kashik grinned, wiping a few stray tears from beneath her eyes as she caught her breath. "Ah! Well. My mother told me that the physical side of things will always work itself out if you love each other. I wouldn't worry too much about it," she chuckled, patting Khiara's hand as she wound her arm through hers once more and started towards the tent. She could see Backlash resting beside Hiloha and Vsenri, and if she wasn't mistaken that was her husband giving his Strider a good once-over with a currycomb.

"Now I just have to figure out how to tell him," she sighed, a shy little smile on her lips.

[Vanator]

Backlash nickered softly as Vanator ran the brush across her buckskin coat, the signs of her pending winter hair now only beginning to appear. Vsenri and Hiloha snorted impatientlynearby, the white Frostmarch even stomping a few times, anxious to receive similar attention. Khiara's northern-bred horse seemed to grow friskier daily as the Cyphrus fall brought cooler temperatures. Both Kashik's and Khiara's mounts had become comfortable with Vanator, allowing him to help regularly groom them and clean their hooves. Catching movement in the corner of his eye, Van turned to see the two women approaching at a distance, arm in arm. Kashik and Khiara shared giggling smiles, the kind that accompanied conversations between women that men were never intended to hear. Seeing the two women he loved become good friends had made the Drykas very happy. He had feared what might have happened once they left Riverfall. Khiara was an emotional wreck, and could not be left on her own. But Kashik, despite unspoken concerns, took the Vantha under her wing and began to teach Khiara how to live on the plains, and among Drykas. It had not been long ago Van and Kash had discussed how much they liked the Vantha, and the part Khiara may play in their future. A broad smile lit the man's face as he leaned against his Strider's haunches and watch the two women approach, amusingly curious as to the nature of their obvioulsy private conversation.

[Khiara]

Khiara giggled, moving closer to Kashik as they approached the pavilion. She could see the golden drykas, tending to the horses. A thrill coursed through her body at the sight of the man, and a warm glow filled her at the sound of Vsenri. Her heart burst everytime she saw him alive, happy and at peace. The frostmarch enjoyed it here, especially now the weather was changing again. He was tired of travelling, and he enjoyed the drykas and their striders. A shy smile came to her lips as she saw Vanator watching them, and her eyes shifted to a pale lavender.

"My mother told me it was best if I moved on, gave myself to another. In Avanthal, they would consider me an Icemaiden as I am twenty one and not yet married. If she knew about this, she would be so honoured. Although..." Giggling again, the girl looked at the ground.

"I wonder if Vanator could afford my bride price." Glancing at Kashik, she giggled again and sighed.

"I will give you two some time, alone, if you like? Will you tell him now?"

[Kashik]

Kashik chuckled and patted Khiara's hand once more. "Don't you go anywhere," she laughed. "You are to become a part of this family, which means this is your joy to share in as well. My children and yours will be siblings, and shall belong to all of us. I love my father's second-wife as I do my own mother, and just as my children will love you. It is not only sorrow we help each other bear the burdens of," she said softly, smiling up at Khiara.

Then her eyes turned to Vanator, and she couldn't help the grin that broke like sunshine over her lips. "Hey there, husband!" she called out to him, waving with her free hand as she pulled the other woman closer. "Busy morning already?" she laughed.

[Vanator]

Vanator pushed off from Backlash to toss the brush into a small grooming bag nearby. Kashik and Khiara were still engaged in a conversation, the nature of which he could not garner. They approached, arm in arm, and his wife exhibited a broad, bright smile, which was not out of the ordinary for the Drykas woman. But this big grin was accompanied by a curious glint in her eye. She was up to something...they both were. He nodded in response to Kashik's greeting. "Hello my wife, hello Khi, what are you two up to...I sense a conspiracy." He laughed, but his tone inferred that he did indeed suspect them of something, and that he wanted to know what it was. Vanator stepped forward, giving Kashik a lingering kiss, then placing a quick peck on Khiara's forehead. He had gotten into the habit of giving Khiara light kisses on the head and cheek. It helped keep them bonded and it gave Van the opportunity to show the Vantha affection without disrespecting Kashik. The Drykas man stepped back, crossed his arms and arched his eyebrows and shifted his gaze from Kash's bright teal to Khiara's rich lavender eyes..."do I need to be worried?"

[Khiara]

Khiara couldn't contain the warm glow that radiated through her at Kashik's words, smiling with a sort of newly discovered joy. There had been aide for her, when the darkness threatened to devour her, and the only repayment was the joy of raising children with the drykas family. The vantha looked toward Vanator as Kashik called out, admiring the ease at which the man tended to the horses.

Unable to help herself, the young woman blushed as Vanator kissed her forehead, smiling all the while. Girlishly, she giggled as he accused them of plotting, shooting Kashik a secretive grin. Momentarily, Khiara moved away from Kashik to the white frostmarch. Vsenri nickered in greeting to the brunette to which Khiara returned the greeting in vani, wishing the stallion and his self proclaimed harem well - even if the striders knew better. Leaning her forehead against his own, she kissed the stallion on the muzzle and stroked his cheek, before returning to Kashik's side.

"Worried? Why in Goddess' name should you need to worry?" She said with a casual shrug, cheeks still red. Looking at Kashik again, she wound her arm in the drykas' and raised an eyebrow.

[Kashik]

Kashik grinned wickedly as Khiara returned to link arms once more, and the two women stared up at Van with all evidence of mischief. "Oh, well he should be a little worried," she said, her voice trying to be serious but her smile belying the tease. "I mean, he has a lot of things to do. He'll need to figure out what we're to do for the next few seasons since, well, traveling in Spring will be out of the question, at least for the end of it. Plus we'll need a bigger tent," she said, ticking off the points on one hand, "oh, and then there's everything for your ceremony. Expanding your pavilion is a lot of work," she sighed, shrugging as if it were just an unbearable burden.

But the shy little smile that tilted her lips as she met her husband's eyes held nothing but joy, and dark eyebrows rose questioningly to see if he'd get exactly what the two women were hinting at.

[Vanator]

Vanator eyed the giggling, ruddy cheeked Khiara suspiciously, following her as she greeted her Frostmarch and then returned to her glowing cohort, Kashik. His glare continued, now sure that the two females did have a secret, and that they were going to reveal it. But Kashik was a teaser, and her wicked grin confirmed that she was not just going to blurt whatever it was out. He listened passively to her seemingly innocuous comments to Khiara, all the while knowing the charade was directed at him. His brow furrowed, hands on hip as he patiently let his wife have her fun. Can't travel in Spring, the "end"? Bigger tent? Now he was intrigued and began to put more thought into it. Khiara's ceremony? Expanding the pavilion...expanding the family. A dawning arose on the man's understanding, though the shock kept him silent for a moment, only his widening eyes and dropped jaw indicating his delayed revelation. He was going to be a father. He rushed Kashik with a combination of a laugh and a whoot, wrapping his arms around her and lifting her off of her feet. He swung her around twice, oblivious to the mud on her clothes, the smell of vomit on her. To him, Kashik was the most beautiful creature the gods had ever placed on the face of Mizahar. He showered Kashik with kisses, finally lowering her to her feet but not releasing her. He kissed his wife firmly on the mouth, maybe too hard in his excitment. "A baby?! A baby!!" Van questioned, though he knew it was true. The Drykas woman had beamed with a special glow lately, and if he had asked any of the older women in the pavilion, they would have told him already the telltale shine Kashik possessed heralded a birth. The father-to-be grinned widely, almost oafishly as he stared into Kashik's teal eyes, enamored all over again with the woman in his arms. "I love you Kashik, I love you. Thank you so much." He kissed her again, pulling her close in a tight embrace. He was overwhelmed. Even after five years of marriage to Tamar, they were never able to bear a child. There was whispers of the Curse, and of Van's possible inability to produce his own heir. After Tamar's death, the talk only increased. But now, they would be silenced. Vanator all but bounced in place, beaming at Kashik, grabbing her again and kissing her. "You have made me the happiest man in Cyphrus my love.!" Releasing Kashik, but keeping her hands in his, he met her gaze again, a tentative glance. His eyes turned towards Khiara. Kashik had hinted at the implications of the pregnancy for he and the Vanthan, a subject the Drykas couple had already discussed. One hand reached out to take Khiara's, squeezing it. He gave the girl a soft smile. "I am so happy you are here to be part of this." His eyes darted back to Kashik, confirming her agreement. "Khiara, I want you to be more than just a neighbor or a friend. You have become very special to us. I want you to be part of our pavilion. I want you to share in our joy. I want you to be my wife."

[Khiara]

Khiara couldn't help the huge smile that almost reached from ear to ear as Vanator slowly picked up on what Kashik was saying. She let go of the woman and stepped back slightly as the estatic man swung her around, laughing at the sight. She could see the love and the utter joy in his face, and it almost brought tears to her eyes. The drykas had no children from his previous marraige, tradgedy ending what chance they ever had, so the words from Kashik's lips had to be a huge blessing.

The vantha looked down as the couple embraced, kissing deeply and obviously belonging together. She felt a little like she was intruding on a private moment, her more innocent upbringing wanting her to go away and give them alone time. But Kashik had insisted she stay, she was family. Eventually she might even join them formally. Looking back up, her smile turned softer, less manic - as she looked at the two. They were drykas, and they belonged. The brunette was happy for her friends, a warm glow in her stomach. Even if what Kashik hinted at never happened, she felt a sort of peace. As much as she loved Vanator, as much as it hurt to be away from him, Khiara felt a happiness knowing he was so happy. She couldn't be sad, and she didn't think to be jealous. A small giggle rose, and she covered her mouth as Vanator stared with an almost dumbfounded grin at his wife.

As the golden man turned his gaze to her, Khiara took his hand, stepping closer and getting ready to congratulate the father-to-be. The brunette squeezed back, and turned her smile on Kashik as Vanator spoke. She wanted to be more than a friend or neighbour too. Maybe one day, but -

The vantha's internal monolouge froze in its tracks, and tears stung her lavender eyes. Her gaze didn't leave Kashik for a moment, smile fading and eyes shifting to a rich saturated violet. Her heart was beating in her throat and she felt weak at the knees. Blinking, she turned her violet gaze to Vanator and swallowed.

"Wha...What?" The word was a struggle to get out, a squeak. Laughing breathlessly, she blinked again and smiled slightly.

"Vanator...I...Kashik...I..." Raising a hand to cover her mouth, the vantha closed her eyes for a moment. Her life so far flashed before her.

Avanthal, shimmering white city of ice. Her hold, warm and glowing with the fire of the hearth. Her mother, so kind and so caring. Her father, ever the hunter and provider of their family. Eliac, so young and free, the love of her life.

Tragedy. Pain. Emptiness.

Vsenri, her only lifeline to sanity and reality. Travel, endless days and nights in a world so strange. Pygmy, wonderful wonderful kelvic and a friend to the end. Vanator, the light at the end of the tunnel. Kashik. Here. Now.

Unable to speak, the vantha nodded, her eyes still shut. A tear had made its way from the corner of her eye and finally she opened them to look at Vanator. From behind her hand, she spoke in a quavering voice.

"I would love..to be your wife."