PM to join What's in a Windmark?

[Seirei Dawnwhisper]

A delicate bloom

Timestamp: 31st Day of Fall, 515 AV
9th Bell, Morning


The air had a biting chill to it this morning, and the roiling fog turned a familiar landscape into a strange, and mysterious one. The twins were quiet, uneasy about the floating grey wisps that clung to the ground, and made it seem like the world was covered by a thin, grey veil. Kairi seemed to take it in stride for the most part. But she did appear to be more alert than normal as she nibbled on the grass around the camp. Her ears flickered back and forth, testing each sound for the slightest hint of danger.

Thunder, like the twins, seemed anxious, and uneasy. Seirei could feel his nervousness through their bond. And she could see it in the way he stayed close to his mother's side rather than playing as he normally did. Seirei wished that she could reassure the young foal. And she did try to project an air of calm and serenity, though she wasn't sure how successful she was.

When Seirei approached the young foal, she moved slowly, keeping her hands at her sides. She had learned that sudden, abrupt movements were likely to startle a horse, or strider, so Seirei tried to keep her movements steady, and even. Once she got close enough, she offered her hand for Kairi and Thunder to sniff. Kairi ignored it, more interested in her meal. But Thunder sniffed her hand carefully. Then he pressed himself against her, leaning into her body as if seeking comfort. Seirei patted him gently, and murmured reassurances to him in a soft, low voice. It seemed to help. But when Kairi moved away as she grazed, Thunder followed.

Seirei watched them for a while. Watching them gave her a chance to think. Bonded Drykas had windmarks, tattoos they got when they bonded to their striders. Seirei knew that she needed to get one of her own now that she had bonded to a strider. But she didn't even know how to begin going about it. Knowing where to go was only the first step. Seirei didn't know, but she knew that she could ask Naiya or Shahar when she was ready to take that step.

The problem lay in the fact that Seirei didn't really understand what a windmark was. It separated a bonded Drykas from one who had yet to bond to a strider. And it separated a Drykas from an outsider. These things, Seirei knew. But each windmark she had seen was different. Some had similarities, while others were completely unique. And even the ones that shared similarities with others had aspects that made them different. How did someone go about deciding what their windmark should be? That was the question Seirei needed an answer for before she could even think about getting one of her own. Another question was where should she get her windmark? Some of the windmarks she had seen had been on their owners' backs. Others were on their arms. Some were fully visible, while others disappeared beneath a person's clothes. Some windmarks were big, and others small. Some were all black, while others were a variety of colors. How did one decide?

After a while, Seirei decided to ask. Perhaps her friend would even have some suggestions on what Seirei's windmark should be. With that thought in mind, Seirei turned to go look for Naiya. If she wasn't busy, perhaps she would be willing to answer her questions, and help Seirei get a better understanding of what a windmark was supposed to be, and how to choose one for herself.

[Naiya]

Fog had billowed in, damp and heavy in the chill morning. The smokey wisps had taken hold, battening down in the grasses and lending an intimate privacy to their home. Naiya had gotten up witth Shahar this morning, bidding him good morning as he slipped quietly out into the grass to seek the fruits of his labor. She had checked on the animals, feeling the udders of the cows to see if they were producing again.

No luck there, a minimal amount was being produced, not enough to be milked, not even enough to sustain a calf. That being done, Naiya had stirred the fire, bid good morning to Khida, and found her way back into the tent, kicking off her boots and slipping back into the warmth of her bed. She curled up in the hollow space shaped like Shahar. She missed spending time with him, being close to him with no purpose other than to be together.

They were busy, they needed to prepare for the coming season. Meat needed to be preserved, nuts and vegetables gathered and stored. Winter was fast approaching, and it was unclear to Naiya whether or not they were ready. The worries were more than enough to send her after the comfort of her husband's presence. Or at least as close as she could get. Which was how she ended up laying in the warm spot where Shahar had been, seeking the comfort she could find there.

She wasn't helping anything, laying about like one of the hunting cats on a hot summer day. She rallied, pulling herself back together before standing up and going back to work.

Looking only slightly guilty for wasting away even the short time she spent, she pulled her boots back on and went to check the fire.

[Colt]

All weather was both a blessing and a curse, Shahar had long since come to realize. Sun, clouds, rain, snow; all things held both advantages and disadvantages, and each had to be known to be useful.

Fog, for example, kept things hidden. To hunt with bow or spear was difficult and near-useless when one could not see what it was they were hunting. And the heavy dampness of the veil tampered with scents, weighing them down and making it difficult for Tuka or Snow to be certain if a trail was young or old.

But those difficulties could be turned around, if one had the mind to be optimistic. Yes, the world was more difficult to navigate, but while it was difficult for the hunters, it was equally difficult for the prey; scent trails, visibility, all of those things that made it difficult for Shahar to hunt with his javelins could just as well be used against those things he hunted.

And as it turned out, fog was a wonderful time to lay traps.

Both of his traps had been filled that morning, one with a fat hare and the other with a lean badger. The badger wouldn’t likely make for very good food, but Shahar would preserve it anyway; with winter coming closer every day, he would willingly preserve the meat of a wolf if it came to him, and pray to the gods that their stores held out enough that they didn’t have to eat it. There was not a great deal of luxury when it came to food, especially with the cold snap that had dried up the milk of the zibri; the unexpected frost had worried both Naiya and Shahar, and driven home his need to bring home as much food as he possibly could.

He spend more time outside the camp this morning than usual, resetting his traps and rubbing the wires against the rabbit to make its scent more prevalent than his own. With the fog upon them, it would likely be a good choice to remain closer to the camp, at least until such a time as it became easier to see; he could process his current kills and then return to his traps to see if others would come to him, and to possibly make more traps if the weather remained the same.

He entered the camp with this plan in mind, Snow at his hip and Tuka off in the grass for her morning solitary hunt. Seirei was observing the horses, Naiya tending to the fire; Shahar gave both a short, warm greeting and went to join his wife at the hearth. Love, I have food.

[Seirei Dawnwhisper]

Seirei found her friend checking on the fire. Shahar was there too, and his hunt must have been a successful one, because after greeting both her and Naiya, he told them that he had brought food. Seirei waited long enough to give Naiya and Shahar some privacy to greet each other. Then she smiled, as she joined her friends at the fire.

"Welcome back." she said softly in greeting.

Seirei greeted Snow politely, too. The large white wolf seemed to be much smarter than other dogs she had seen in the past. She wasn't sure if that was because she was a wolf instead of a dog, or if it was simply because she was Snow, and unique. But she seemed at times as if she was more like a strider, or even a person than an ordinary dog. So Seirei tended to treat her like one when she saw her. Simple things like greeting her when she saw Snow around the Camp, mostly. It didn't even seem strange to talk to Snow like she was a person, the way it might have before she had bonded to Thunder. But she talked to Thunder and Kairi as if they were humans, too. So why not treat Snow to the same courtesy?

"I was hoping to talk to both of you today." Seirei said hesitantly after a few ticks.

"I understand that Drykas get windmarks when they bond to a strider. And now that I've bonded to Thunder, I know that I should get mine done soon. But...how do you know what kind of windmarks to get? I've sen some people who have them on their back, while others have them on their arms, or other places. Are there rules about where to get them? And how do you decide on what design to get? Some of the people I've seen have similar designs, but there are a lot of differences, too. I don't want to offend anyone by getting the wrong kind of windmark by mistake."

Her tone was one of confusion, as were the signs that accompanied her words, and even her posture indicated the depth of her confusion in this matter.

"I've given the matter a lot of thought, but I don't have the slightest idea of what to get for my windmarks. Or where I should go to get them. Are there rituals involved in getting a windmark that I need to know about? Or certain times that they should, or shouldn't be done?"

There was plenty of work to be done now that Shahar had returned from his hunt. But Seirei hoped that her friends would be willing to answer her questions as they worked.

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[Naiya]

Love, welcome, pride Naiya greeted her hunter with a kiss, relieved that his morning had been more fruitful than her own. An echo of missed you hung across her shoulders, one that had tethered itself to her and refused to be shaken.

It didn't have long to be noticed, although she spared a moment for another happy kiss to the rough stubble on his cheek. She offered to take the rabbit, they both knew she wasn't necessarily good at skinning, but she had at least managed with a rabbit before, the badger was completely outside of her skill set.

Seirei joined them then, greeting Shahar and his fluffy companion. "Come sit with us, there is plenty of room." She told Seirei, at the woman's hesitant words.

Windmarks. It was a topic of great importance, one that had recently become more urgent to Naiya as well as Seirei, or so it seemed. Naiya's windmarks had been washed away by the water of the underground cave, a bit of magic that had saved her life, but had the unfortunate effect of removing her family mark as well.

Naiya was hesitant, willing to share, unsure of how so many things affected the windmarks, it was quite an ordeal to pick them and have them done. It had crossed her mind that Seirei would need marks of her own soon, but perhaps not with the same urgency that the other woman seemed to be feeling.

"Often windmarks are shared among families, the marks making a Drykas's family clear from a distance. Other families have more subtle designs, or smaller less recognizable imagery." She paused, considering the other questions.

"Different families have different rituals, traditions, always there is a fast before the mark, arrangements made with the tattooist, family will sometimes accompany you." She shook her hands loose, a number of signs relaying an overwhelming amount of words she wanted to share without the ability to do so.

She turned to Shahar, an inquiry of her own shaped into her shoulders, one that recalled conversations the two had had in the past about the woman who they had rescued. What would they offer the woman and her children who had become a part of their daily routines?

[Colt]

Both guest and wife flashed greetings at him when he returned home. Shahar paused for Naiya’s kiss, giving her hand a quick squeeze in return before going on to continue to morning routine. Naiya offered to take the rabbit alongside a second happy kiss, and the hunter handed off the animal with a brief, grateful nod. The two of them working one apiece would finish the entire thing faster.

Shahar settled next to Naiya, near enough to keep up a conversation but distant enough that they wouldn’t get in each other’s way. Snow, sensing an unsignaled dismissal, wandered off to find something interesting. She was greeted in turn by Seirei, who was moving to join them all with something that looked like hesitance. Shahar cocked his head for a curious moment, but did not inquire; Seirei had something to say, it seemed, and there was no need for impatience.

With that in mind, Shahar settled in, drew his knife and began the delicate work of skinning the badger. A single long line, lengthwise from one end to the other was enough to get his fingers in; the hunter let the knife drop and began peeling the skin away from the stomach, just as Seirei began her questions.

Windmarks. She wanted to know about windmarks.

Shahar was attentive even though he continued to work on the badger. Four more cuts of the knife, one up the inside of leg to make the whole stomach more loose and pliable, then it was back to working the thing with his fingers.

The Dawnwhisper hunter had also thought about windmarks in passing, particularly in regards to Seirei, but the work of the day could always be counted on to interrupt his thoughts. Seirei was right; she was Drykas and she had earned windmarks. No, she needed her windmarks.

There was a short silence when Seirei finished as both Dawnwhispers gathered up their thoughts.

Naiya was the first to respond, words of family and tradition rolling into the air. Shahar stopped skinning as his thoughts fell deeper. Family windmarks… yes, that was how things were supposed to go. At least, when one had a family.

Naiya turned to him, her posture asking for a response of his own. Shahar hmmed thoughtfully.

“Windmarks are…” important. Memory? “History,” in a way. “They make you Drykas, yes,” but also do more. “They show others who you are. The sort of history that you have come from, so that they might recognize the history that you will make in the future.”

He set down the badger and leaned forward, giving the two women his full attention.

“Naiya and I are different,” particularly “in windmarks. When Naiya found Wildfire, she had a family.” He had to bite back a small flash of disdain at the thought of them. “Her family had a history and a name. Her windmarks tie her to that history, because that is where she came from.”

He paused to give Naiya opportunity to add something if she wished, then moved on to describe his own experience.

I was different, his body said. “When I found Akaidras, I had no history. There was no family that I had come from and I had no name to bind myself. My windmarks state this.”

He settled Seirei with a contemplative stare. “I do not think you are either of these things, Seirei. Your history is not with the Drykas, but you are Drykas.” Now and forever. “There is not a family history like Naiya’s.” Nevertheless, “You are not alone like I was.” This I know. Naiya and I, “We care for you. When danger comes,” inevitable, “we will protect you. You do not have family history, but you are not alone.”

That was the most thorough he could go without wandering into something more specific. Shahar looked at Naiya and wondered if she was thinking the same thing he was. To his wife-of-fire, Shahar let a subtle thinking of offering flicker over his hands; windmarks were always more than simple markings, and the idea forming in his head was something that could not be undone. He hesitated, because although he was somewhat certain that Naiya would not be against him, he didn’t know if Seirei herself was ready for something as permanent as he was thinking about.