Family Responsibilities (Vanator)

[Kashik]

"Some things you do because you want to. Some things you do because of the needs of others in your family." ___ 82nd Day of Spring A season. She'd planned to spend a season in Riverfall, and so had most of the Spring gone by. It had been so much more than she'd expected; she had thought it might simply be boring, or perhaps that it might change her into something she didn't want to be. Instead it had honed her, cut off the unfinished edges and sharpened her into something not different, but distilled. Her body was firmer, more muscled, though she was as ample of breast and hip as she'd ever been and no amount of exercise would rid her of those. It was more than that, though - her eyes were clearer, her mind more focused on the hear-and-now, and though she smiled just as easily there was now more thought behind those brilliant blue-green eyes. When the messenger brought her the note scrawled in her brother's familiar sloping hand, she'd actually been relieved, and that surprised her just as much as anything else. She'd expected to rebel, to fight going back and want to stay in Riverfall to train, but the truth was that she was homesick, desperate for the wild openness of the Sea of Grass, for the familiar dark faces of her people. For a chance to find... She packed up her things and headed out the next morning, more than a week's ride to Endrykas ahead of her - but it flew by, so eagerly did she anticipate seeing the bright tents of her people. When they appeared on the horizon, she actually wept with joy, and felt no shame for it. She arrived on the 74th day of Spring and found them waiting for her at the War Pavilion, the great training tents run by the Diamond Clan, blood-red for battle and glittering white for their Clan. It was almost summer, when the Brightsmile Pavilion would train its warriors under some of the best men and women of the Diamond Clan, and apparently most of them had rolled into Endrykas a few weeks early since her eldest brother had been invited to some wedding or other. They were all of them there: her half-brother Eamonn who would be training alongside her, as well as both her younger brothers Prentim and Tuvak and, a little surprisingly, her youngest sister Lyris, who was only eight years old and had never before expressed an interest in touching a blade. There were several cousins there as well, and the result was an extremely boisterous welcome complete with bright laughter and beaming smiles and screams and squeals and even a few tears and playful punches. A good reunion, the way it was meant to be, and it thrilled her down to her soul. That evening was spent in a raucous celebration in their tents beyond the edge of Endrykas, and they traded their stories of the past season. Her eldest brother Bremon, the Ankal's heir, spent the night plying her with hugs and wine until she'd shared every last detail of her time away - including her time spent with a certain Ankal's son of the Denusk Pavilion. There were no secrets in the Brightsmile family, all of them too outrageous and outspoken to hold anything in for long, so she spoke candidly of what they'd shared, and what she'd felt, and her brother watched her with smiling eyes and a scheming heart. She wasn't sure what exactly was going on when, a week later, Bremon's wife dragged her away from her spears and took her down to the river for a thorough scrubbing. She began to suspect when she was then ushered back and the rest of the women gathered around to rub a honey infusion into her skin. "You're putting me up on the block, aren't you?" she laughed, though her smile had dimmed a bit and something twisted in her heart. So. All things must come to an end, yes? Her fanciful dreams were simply coming to a close sooner than she'd liked. Her brother's wife lent her a flowing linen skirt that only went halfway down her thighs, and a sleeveless blouse almost completely covered in diamond chips and quartz beads, and the gods alone knew which member of their Clan had passed those clothes around when they'd heard that Kashik Brightsmile was about to be wooed. It was the best piece of gossip that week, flying from woman to woman throughout Endrykas, and had she been any less oblivious even Kashik might have noticed the sly looks sent her way when she went to the War Pavilion each morning. But for all that they'd wagged their tongues to each other, the women had been careful to let no hint of it slip to the ears of the two it most concerned, so Kashik just found herself suddenly bejeweled and scented and giggled patiently. Long hair was twined with more jewels, though most of her curls were set free to slither over her shoulders. She felt ridiculous, and felt even more ridiculous when her giggling family members ushered her into one of the other tents and left her there, alone and fidgeting as she paced back and forth, to wait on the arrival of whatever man her brother had decided to parade in front of her. Or perhaps it was the other way around, but she wasn't used to being paraded.

[Vanator]

Vanator took the bucket of fresh, cold water, a rag and a towel behind his tent to the small partitioned stall he had erected. The Drykas had encouraged Pygmy to bath in it, instead of the river around which Endrykas had been erected. The Kelvic had no qualms about washing naked, but Vanator had developed a curious aversion to others gazing upon her stout but attractive form. His mother had told him to make sure and clean up well, as if he was still sixteen years old. She admonished him that the meeting that he and his father had with the Diamond Clan was important, and that his Eachaan wanted to make a good impression. So Van entered the canvas stall and wash himself, then coated his skin with an oil his mother had suggested he used. The aroma was spiced and musky, smelling more appropriate for courting than business. But if Nadra did not detect the scent upon her son, she would give him her disappointed face....again. So he applied it to his skin, The ointment giving him a sheen that seemed to catch light and emphasize the contour of his muscles. He chose a blue tunic, not his favorite color, but appropriate for a Sapphire clansman, especially at an inter-clan gathering. The garment's hems were adorned with a darker embroidered border of abstract design. He donned clean brown breeches and brush-cleaned boots. Another curious gift from his parents was the golden torc that his father had lent him and insisted that he wear to the meeting. Van worked the thick gold circle around his neck. After combing is hair back, Van finally braided the newly polished bronze and silver bands into a strand on either side of his face. He stood for a moment. Pygmy was not around to look him over and make sure he appeared alright, so whataever he looked like would have to do. Why so formal for such a meeting? Van had been away from his mother and father for more than a season. Without their constant, subtle nagging, the Ankal's son had let down his guard. Otherwise he would have seen this conspiracy coming a league away. As it was, Van had no idea that it was a set up, and faithfully accompanied his father to the tents of an unannounced pavilion of the Diamond Clan. Eachaan did not offer his son any details of the conference, remaining unusually quiet. Vanator knew only a few of the stout warriors of the Diamond clan, one in particular that frequently visited his thoughts. The two Denusk men stopped before a tent. A tall, well-muscled man met them. He was close to Vanator's own age, he guessed, and the set of his jaw and eyes hinted some familiarity, though he knew he had never met the man. The Diamond clansman and Eachaan shared wry smiles that Van did not miss. Oh no. Another set up. Van's heart sank. He already wrestled with complicated affections for three very special women, four if he admitted his attraction to Khiara. The ongoing efforts of his parents to marry him off again had grown tedious before he left for the season, now it was plainly unwelcomed. Van put on a congenial smile for the man who introduced himself as Bremon, a name that should have rung a bell had Van not been so distraught. Bremon's smile did not diminish as he opened the flap to the tent and gestured for Vanator to enter. Once in side, it took only an instant for his eyes to adjust and recognize the woman standing within. His breath froze in his chest, his heart jumped and his loins flared. It was her! After a moment his shock subsided and he burst into laughter. "Kashik!" He uttered, half in greeting, half out of sheer surprise. He quickly closed the gap between them, pausing just inches from her. After so long, he was not sure how to greet her, even though she had stolen his heart when she left for Riverfall. Van reached for her hands, meeting her bright teal gaze. "Its been a long time Kashik." He loved to speak that name.

[Kashik]

___ Kashik had been pacing back and forth for what seemed like an entire bell, but couldn't have been more than ten chimes. She'd worked herself up to a fevered pitch in that time, not really one used to waiting. She told herself this was just politics, and perhaps it wouldn't be so bad; she was Bremon's only full-sister, and he surely wouldn't marry her off to be someone's third-wife. She would be first-wife, with at least the honor that that deserved. And he wouldn't dare try and marry her to someone who wouldn't value her skills in battle, or who wouldn't consult with her and - if only in private - respect her opinion as an equal. But those thoughts circled around in her head like bees around a particularly defenseless flower, and by the time she heard her brother's voice greeting another man, her head snapped up and she nearly fell over. So she took a moment to smooth down her shirt and pull her blouse straight, yanking her hair forward over her shoulder and making sure she at least looked presentable. She also wasn't used to trying to look presentable. She was still smoothing a hand down her clothes when the man walked in, and she had to close her eyes and swallow as she braced herself for whatever fate her brother might have left her to. Then -- Kashik! She heard her name, eyes flashing open as wide as saucers as she recognized that voice, and her jaw dropped open to find Vanator Denusk of the Sapphire Clan standing before her. And then laughing, and grinning, and clasping her hands, looking for all the world like everything she could ever have wanted. Seeing him was one thing, but when he came close she caught wind of that familiar musky scent and memories slammed into her, memories that sent a flush to her dark skin - darker now after a season of training, but still not enough to hide the flush of pleasure. "Vanator?" she breathed, almost as if she didn't believe it could really be him. And then he spoke again, said her name again, and her grin flared to life. It held Syna's own light, so overjoyed that it was almost surprising the tent didn't billow out from it's aftershock. And then there wasn't any question of what to do. She threw her arms around his neck, coming completely off her feet, and kissed him.

[Vanator]

The dread Van felt entering the tent was so rapidly replaced by joy that a chill ran through his body. Kashik flashed her unique, brilliant smile and the Ankal's son basked in its familiar rays. His arms instinctively encircled her waist as she drew to him and they met in a sweet and long awaited kiss. Vanator did not release her soon, simply drinking her in, expressing the longing he had felt during their separation in the firmness of his hug and the fierceness of his kiss. Forcing himself to step back, again taking her hands in his, the Drykas man allowed his gaze to assess Kashik. The Spring had been good to her. The Drykas woman's limbs were muscled and stronger, her smooth skin even richer and deeper in its bronze tone, her generous curves as beautiful as he so often remembered. Then his eyes lifted to meet Kashik's blue-green gaze, bright and intelligent and laughing, and something more. "I...uh," He was still stunned by the situation as he tried to unravel what their families had done. He wondered if is father knew about his encounter with Kashik earlier in the season. "Kashik, I have missed you, and now you are here. And," his thumb jabbed towards the closed tent flap. "...and they set us up and..." He laughed again, setting aside the circumstances of their meeting to focus on the gorgeous woman before him. Taking a breath his glance settled again on her eyes. "Gods, you look amazing." An unusual occurrence had taken place. Vanator was overwhelmed. For a long moment, he simply stared at her, his smile wide, his thumbs brushing the backs of her hands as he held them. Finally he came to his senses, is words finally finding a voice. "Tell me, how are you, what is going on?"

[Kashik]

Kashik stared at him with the same dumbfounded look in her eyes, a frission of excitement burning all thought from her brain when she felt his hands on her. "Yes, they..." she said, filling in his pauses with awkward, breathy words as if she couldn't quite get enough air for full sentences. "And you're here! And I've missed you too," she finished, beaming up at him and bouncing on her toes a little. She knew her brother (if not his father as well) must be listening to their ridiculous snatches of conversation - and if she knew the women of her Pavilion, they were crouched on the other side of the tent and trying very hard not to giggle. But she didn't care, because he was here. She laughed at his compliment, not as if she didn't care but more as if it so pleased her to hear it from his lips that she couldn't help but laugh. "You look better than I remember," she said, lifting his hands to press them against her cheeks. It was something her mother always did when her father returned from the Sea, and now she finally understood it - she could feel the essence of his strength in those mighty warrior's hands. She released them, and her eyes flashed back up to his and then around the tent. "Oh! I'm sorry, I'm... I'm doing this all wrong I think, but you've thrown me for a loop. They told me... but they didn't tell me who..." She shook her head as if to banish some of the fog from her mind, laughing at herself again, and then drew him over to the pile of cushions that had been set up to one side. "Here, sit," she said, pushing him down just as she had when they'd returned to their shelter after the storm, though this time she hesitated and settled beside him instead of in his lap, afraid to assume too much. "I'm well," she said, smiling up at him as she took his hand once more. "How are you? You must tell me what adventures you've found here in Endrykas. I just returned from Riverfall a few days ago, so I still haven't really seen the city. My Pavilion is to spend the summer here in Endrykas at the War Pavilion, though, so I'll have plenty of time. I didn't... I'd mentioned you to Bremon but I never expected that he'd..." She flushed again, unable to get her tongue to work properly. "I just thought it'd be some... stranger," she finished, laughing breathlessly. And then her eyes caught his, and held, and every fiber of this storm-mad girl focused entirely on him, as if the eye of a hurricane were staring him down and smiling all the while. "I'm glad it's not," she added, fingers threading with his.

[Vanator]

Vanator simply stood silent for a moment as Kashik took his hands in hers and placed his palms upon her cheeks. Though her hands, like his, were rough from wielding weapons, the woman's cheeks were soft and pleasant to touch. The gesture was warm and caring, and spoke of a deep connection being re-kindled. With a grin Van followed her to the pile of cushions and once again let her coax him to sit. She plopped down next to him, and he laughed as she took his hand and stumbled through her words. After their previous encounter, so wildly free and unrestrained in the solitude of the Sea of Grass and the raucous night on the town, this unexpected, carefully proscribed meeting had thrown both of them. Van returned Kashik's penetrating gaze as the woman spoke the things that rushed through her mind. That's how Kashik was. Thet man was enjoying the sound of her voice again, strong and joyful. When she finally paused, entwining her fingers in his, Van leaned in again to kiss her passionately. His words could wait a moment. The Drykas man had been captivated again by Kashik, in only a few chimes, a few words, a few touches. When he finally forced himself to pull back, he sighed and grinned widely like a child who had eaten a sweetbread dessert. His eyes opened and settled again on Kashik's teal gaze, His smile remained beaming. "We have a lot to catch up on. I want to hear about Riverfall, and if you met my sister. I will tell you of Endrykas, though not much that would be considered adventure transpires here." He winked at her. "But that can wait. There is something I have been dying to do." He rose from the cushions, releasing Kashik's hand, and walked closer to the pavilion's entrance. If they were going to play the game their families had set up for them, Van was going to have fun with it. He raised his voice slightly. "What does a guy have to do to get some dance music around here?" He shot a glance over at Kashik and flashed a white smile. Walking to a small table set up across from the pile of cushions, Van poured Kashik and himself a cup of wine from a pottery pitcher. "While we wait, why don't we have a toast." He sat next to the beautiful Drykas again, handing her a cup and giving her a wry grin. He remembered the toast they had made in the tavern the night before she left Endrykas. He raised his glass and recited Kashik's words from that evening. "To warm food, new laps, good friends, and to Zulrav's mighty storms!" Clinking his cup atainst hers, Van took a deep drink of the fruity wine, trying not to laugh into his cup. The sound of a lute and flute drifted in from outside the tent, a slow dance tune that was one of Van's favorites, no doubt the work of his mother. Putting down his cup and standing, Van held his hand out to the seated girl. "Would you care to dance with me Kashik of the Brightsmile Pavilion?" He winked again, raising his eyebrows mischievously.

[Kashik]

Vanator kissed her again, and the rest of the world faded away - her nervousness disappeared, and she returned it with equal fervor and passion. When he finally pulled back (and he had to, for she wasn't sure she'd ever have stopped kissing him), she was practically in his lap.

When he got up to yell at whoever might be listening, Kashik tried to get ahold of herself, but she knew it was nearly impossible. Her cheeks were pink and flushed, eyes glassy with shock and pleasure, and she couldn't keep a rather dopey grin off her lips. She caught his eyes as he returned, and gripped the cup in trembling hands. "Ha!" she said, a bark of laughter to hear that he'd remembered the toast, and her grin somehow turned up another notch. If nothing else, Kashik Brightsmile was earning her Pavilion's name today.

She quickly downed the wine, hoping it would calm her nerves a little - and then she heard the faint strains of music, and he was up and offering his hand to her, and she realized that she didn't want her nerves to calm. She wanted this, this magic, this feeling, wanted it to last until Syna fell from the sky never to rise again. The empty cup was tossed over her shoulder with abandon, and she took his hand and let him pull her up to her feet.

Kashik laughed, a glorious sound, and the diamond-spangled blouse she wore shimmered and reflected the low light within the tent. Strong arms twined around his neck as she pressed herself against him, one hand twining in the bronze-touched curls of his hair and the other slipping beneath the collar of his tunic. The girl wasn't the best dancer in the world, but she knew how to cling just-so, and he'd a troublesome look in his eyes that she was more than willing to indulge. "There's nowhere else I'd rather be, Vanator Denusk of the Sapphire Clan," she said, voice low and husky, and she punctuated that by trailing her nose long his jawline.

[Vanator]

As Kashik wrapped her arms around his neck and drew close against him, it was as if they had picked up from that night nearly 70 days ago. The awkwardness of the arranged meeting, the initial surprise and following uncertainty of seeing Kashik again had vanished. Van slipped his arms around her slim waist, pulling her gently closer. The flutter he felt only increased as they began to sway, stepping in small circles around the tent. It was not a traditional dance, just a rhythmic movement that they both settled into comfortably, allowing their attention to focus on one another. As Kashik spoke, Vanator drank in her perfumed scent. It was different than when they first met, certainly applied as part of her clanswomen's preparations. But the aroma was lovely and feminine, and behind it all was still the faint familiar scent of honey. He buried his face for a moment in her her dark curly locks, enjoying the feel of her silky mane against his skin. He tilted his head closer in response as Kashik's face caressed his. Though she could not see it, his grin had expanded to a beaming smile. Her honest confession touched him deeply, and, with her in his embrace, he would be hard pressed deny that he felt the same. Much had transpired since they were last together, a certain complexity that vexed his heart. But as for that moment, she provided some sense of groundedness, she was familiar and firmly, powerfully, beautifully Drykas. Van's hands caressed the small of Kashik's back. "I am glad to hear you say that Brightsmile." His voice was lowered, spoken close to her ear. "I really needed you to show up." He pressed his lips to her cheek, leaving a trail of kisses that ended on her full lips. He took his time, tasting the wine on her mouth, then parting her lips to taste it within, allowing some of the passion she had stirred within him to manifest.

[Kashik]

His words set the fearless warrior woman to trembling in his arms, her fingers twisting closer in his hair. Kashik's mouth opened to his with only the smallest of sounds - somewhere between a gasp and a moan, but there was no question that it was in that very moment, with that sound, that she gave the last piece of her heart to Vanator.

The next few moments were lost to her, nothing more than a haze of joy and passion that left her dizzy and breathless. Her body clung to his as if she wouldn't have been able to stand if he let her go, and that much was probably true, for she wasn't quite certain where her legs were at that exact point in time. All she knew was the warmth of his body wrapped around hers, the taste of his mouth, and the soul-shattering knowledge that he'd needed her. Those simple words changed something within her, opened some part of her that was known only to women, that blossomed and grew to fill her with the need to bolster this beautiful, amazing man. Had anyone asked her a week ago she wouldn't have believed such a thing possible - it was only now, when she knew she loved him and knew everything that that entailed in one brilliant flash of understanding, did she truly see what it could mean to cleave her life to another. To depend on him for safety and strength, and in return be the unflinching pillar that held him up and kept him going.

"I'm here," she whispered against his lips, lashes fluttering open as she stared up at him with every ounce of her heart in her eyes. Her hands skimmed forward to cup his cheeks softly, a ghostly touch, and she brought his brow down to touch hers. "I'm here, and if you let me I will always be here," she murmured. "Tell me your troubles, let me share your burdens, Van. Let me help you."

[Vanator]

Vanator's awareness seemed to close in as he melted into Kashik. Gone from his conscious were the musicians and the family members doubtlessly waiting anxiously just outside. Even the walls of the tent vanished as he lost himself in the passion of their kiss. Kashik's words were like cool water on a parched day, or a soothing ointment on a wound. Van's heart pounded as the gorgeous woman in his arms revealed her own heart to him. Any wall that may have existed between them collapsed soundly. Suddenly deep emotions surfaced, revealing with clarity the nature of his desires and needs. A flush of warmth spread across his body, a sensation expanded in his chest that he feared it could not contain. His gaze was soft and deep, the dim flicker of lamps reflecting off the gold flecks in his irises. He had much to tell her, and he could no longer hold his tongue. He did not waver from the depths of Kashik's gaze. His voice was low and thick with sentiment. "For so long after Tamar's death, I had refused to love anyone. Countless times my father would arrange for me to meet a prospective bride, but because of the loss of my wife, and that fact that I was no longer a young man, he did not force me to marry. Though as an Ankal's son, it is imperative that I eventually marry again, I could not bring myself to choose a wife." "Then we met. Kashik, in 24 bells you ignited something within me I feared was long dead. My heart stirred again, I glimpsed at the hope that I could share myself with someone again. Then you left." Van's hands ran up her back to caress the lean, smooth corded muscles of her arms draped over his shoulders. "But what you had given me I shared with others... wonderful, beautiful women inside and out. I found love with them, each in a unique way. Whether right or wrong, I love them all. But my sudden sowing of affections had presented its own dilemmas. To be honest, I would have taken them all to wife, but circumstances dictated otherwise, and my heart was torn between them." His hands slid to her back again, one entangling in her curly mane. "Kashik, it was you who first taught me to love again, gave me the the ability to love them. You have rescued me in a way. I know now what is meant to be. Our families knowingly or not, have seen it." Van stopped their circling dance. His hands shifted to either side of Kashik's face, lightly laying against the soft dark skin. His thumbs brushed her cheekbones. The horseman's eyes fixed on hers, so intense that she felt as if he were reaching through her gaze to her soul. His pulse raced, his stomach quivered, but his heart was set and his mind convinced. He had been given the prerogative to make his own choice, and so he did. His voice grew stronger, his smile for the moment rivaling even the stunning Kashik's in brightness. "You are the most amazing, beautiful, desirable woman I have ever met. Kashik of the Brightsmile Pavilion of the Diamond Clan, will you be my wife?"