[Solo RP] Help me redeem myself (Naamah and Xeria)

[Fatal Irony]

Private rp between these two soquili  

[Fatal Irony]

It was a moonless night, unseasonably warm and impossibly light despite the lack of moon. The stallion supposed perhaps his night vision was improving. The trees were bare and the ground was covered in the leavings of the trees seasonal shedding. The deciduous plants had all retreated inward to guard against a cold that never came. Perhaps the weather Gods were simply storing up their fury for the months ahead. The thought made the stallion uneasy as he silently slipped among the trunks, mist curling around him. He naturally had his own dark smoke that followed him, but this natural emission also mixed with the white mists of the woods creating a blood-in-water effect.

As Xeria moved deeper into the woods the white mist grew thicker, choking out the oxygen it seemed. There was a lake nearby - he was close to his father's territory. He can't put to words what compelled him back here, but it was strong whatever it was. He felt a pull the likes of which he'd never known before. There was something in the air, riding the waves of fog through Xeria the closer he came to the home of his father. Something was afoot.

He felt a presence, some manifestation that grew stronger as he neared the familiar lake. He scented something and stopped dead. A stranger had been here. Though something in the smell was at once familiar and comforting, if alien. He tensed as he tried to determine the source of it, the direction the wind had borne the scent in. Something was wrong here, thought Xeria didn't sense and immediate danger. What was happening here?

He began in a wide circle, going in the direction the scent seemed to be coming from. He was silent as a shadow and wasn't worried about being seen in the murky darkness. He was concerned with being able to see this intruder before he ran right into it. He paused often, perking his ears up and listening intently. He debated shrinking, but that took energy and he wanted to be at his best in case this ended up in confrontation. During one such interlude he heard the telltale rusting of a large being nearby. He tightened his circling until he pinpointed it more closely, then stopped to listen for signs of who or what this might be.

Deciding it didn't sound like a threat, he emerged from the darkness and mist to get a good look at her - for a mare it was, one dark as him and nearly invisible in the gloom and fog. He couldn't help staring a moment, their eyes locked in confusion. She was familiar in a way that made Xeria uneasy, but hopeful. "I am Xeria, King of these Woods. Who are you."
 

[Fatal Irony]

She stood staring at the figure before her in confusion, then in amusement - trying desperately not to laugh. He was clearly trying to intimidate her, however he was small in stature. Of flutter blood, though not pure, he was smaller than a normal stallion. Around her size, actually, now that she looked at him closer. "King of the Woods, huh? That's interesting. How do you enforce your laws, then?" She couldn't hide the grin that seeped into her voice. She couldn't say how she knew it, but this stallion was clearly of her blood. Her son's spawn? "It that your father I've just left behind me?"

 

[Fatal Irony]

He was taken aback by her lack of fear, and her astute observations. Did his father warn her about him? Well that wouldn't do. While he enjoyed the small amount of notoriety this prospect suggested, he also liked the surprise that came with jumping out of shadows at strangers. He struggled with the polar feelings, then settled on flattery. He decided that any bit of fame or reputation he could garner was a good thing. "Yes, that is my father in the clearing. I see my reputation precedes me." He bowed low before her in a flourish. "And who might you be, m'lady?" He couldn't shake the feeling of familiarity he got when looking at her. Something resonated in his core and he peered at her more closely. She strongly resembled his father. Strongly.. Agares never mentioned his family...
 

[Fatal Irony]

Her eyes welled up at the affirmation and she flung herself at him to embrace him as best she could. He struggled and moved away from her, but she didn't care. Her grandson! Tears streamed down her face freely. "You are... my grandson!" She was filled with joy at the discovery. "He didn't tell me... Has he never mentioned me?"

 

[Fatal Irony]

He was thrown off entirely by the physical contact and backed up a few steps, though it made much more sense when she revealed her identity. "Grandmother? I have a grandmother!" He felt stupid for saying so. Of course he had a grandmother. He had several, in fact, on his mother's side, though he never met any of them. THIS was one that was never mentioned, however. "Where have you been? We've never heard of you! This is incredible!" His entire "king of the forest" persona forgotten, he continued to bombard her with random questions and comments about his own life. "Did he... did you part on good terms?" He knew his father could be stubborn and he wondered how this surprise meeting had gone.
 

[Fatal Irony]

She frowned and bit her lip slightly. "I wouldn't say 'good terms' exactly, but he did agree to see me again and hear me out." She shrugged, more interested in taking in the sight of her grandson. "You're so grown up. I'm so sorry to have missed everything..." Her lip trembled a little. She shook her head. She was just overly emotional and drained from the day's events. "It's been a long day. Care to escort this old lady to a more hospitable place to lie down for the night?" She also wanted the stallion's company. "Please, tell me more of your life. I want to know it all!"

 

[Fatal Irony]

He nodded in understanding. Agares was soemtimes a hard stallion to get through to, but Xeria was confident he would come around. This mare - wait did she not tell him her name?! - was gentle and kind and seemed so sad. There was tragedy clearly in her past, perhaps a reason for Agares' distance and solitude. "Grandmother... what is your name?" He felt stupid asking it, but she was clearly not giving it to him. "And where have you been? Something horrible happened, didn't it?" His voice fell to a reverent whisper. "Is my grandfather... dead?"
 

[Fatal Irony]

The two had begun walking companionably towards a place Naamah could presumably sleep. She didn't want to be too far away from Agares. She laughed as her grandson asked for her name. "I am Naamah. You may call me that if you like." Grandmother sounded so.... old. They walked in peaceable silence for a bit, but she stopped dead in her tracks at his question. She looked at him in the eyes, sadness welling up within her. Would she ever stop mourning? "I had a mate, your grandfather. And another child. Agares' sibling. They... " She looked away sharply. "I never found them."

 

[Fatal Irony]

The stallion paused alongside his grandmother, shocked at her level of grief. There seemed more to the story, but she was clearly unable to tell it. He felt strange at the news, sad and somehow hollow. He hadn't even met these relatives and yet... his heart ached. He could only imagine what Naamah must feel having known them. He bowed his head in respectful silence, mourning the passing of these two souls. Then suddenly he jerked his head up and looked at Naamah. "You never [fi]found them! Then there's hope! We can search for them! Where did you last see them?" He was practically vibrating with excitement. He could go on this grand adventure just like Nita did, but he could be the hero. He could find his grandfather and aunt or uncle and bring them home and - he stopped. It made sense now. He had only to look into Naamah's sad eyes to confirm it. Of course she had searched. She had searched for years. That's where she has been and why she wasn't around. Here she was broken, defeated, and in mourning. He wrapped her in a hug and let her cry against him. She had given up hope, and that was a sad thing to accept. He silently vowed to help her at least get her son back, if she can't have her mate and other child. He parted from her and offered her a smile. "Come on, there's a comfortable cave just around this bend."
 

[Fatal Irony]

She was taken aback by the level of empathy from this grandson of hers. He didn't know her, and yet here he was enveloping her in a supportive cocoon of collective sorrow. She saw the sadness cross his face, almost as if he knew what had been lost. Of he DIDN'T know, couldn't know. She would carry the memory of Samael and Berith forever, their faces burned into her heart. She allowed herself to break against Xeria like a wave, letting her tears flow and her grief drown her. When she finally pulled away she wore a wistful smile, acknowledging the hope Xeria held, a hope she had let go of. Perhaps it was the wrong thing to do, but she could hardly breathe when she thought about Samael and her lost child. She couldn't hope any more. It was killing her in ways great and small, and she had had enough. She could no longer go on the way she had been, and as soul crushing as it was, she had made the choice to give the rest of her years to her son, and whatever family he had made.

"Will you stay with me, at least until I fall asleep?" She had spent years alone, had become accustomed to it and wore her loneliness like a shield. She didn't want to live like that anymore and felt a desperate desire to never be alone again.

 

[Fatal Irony]

The force of her grief moved him, as much as her request surprised him. The two had only just met, and yet she felt as familiar to him as his own mother. Jinn would forgive his absence for a night, considering the two often traveled apart. It was clear his grandmother needed him more.

"I'll stay with you all night, and we can have breakfast together. Maybe we can build a fire and tell stories!" He loved stories. And he wanted to hear about her travels, and perhaps about his grandfather if Naamah felt up to talking about him. He motioned towards the cave once more, getting them moving once more. The shadows were deepening, the moon beginning to drop, but he kept a store of wood in the cave for emergencies such as this one. They reached the cave in silence, listening to the sounds of the night as the nocturnal creatures went about their business. It was late, a time when the darkness truly took over and ti was hard to see. Still, the stallion was able to get a small fire going, letting Naamah rest while he worked. Once it was finally going, he settled in across from his grandmother.

"Could you tell me about him? My grandfather?" He asked softly. It felt cruel to ask it of her, and yet he couldn't keep his curiosity at bay.
 

[Fatal Irony]

By the time they had reached the cave she had settled her nerves and allowed her mind to wander. Night was a magical time, one favored among her family it seemed. Perhaps they inherited that from her. It was always interesting that she favored night while her gruff mate always favored the sun. They were so different sometimes, and yet... when it really counted they were always on the same wavelength. He was her protector in all things, and perhaps that was why she enjoyed the night - she had Samael by her side to defend against any danger. Since his loss she had forgotten how serene the night was, but tonight she felt different. She seemed to be thawing out, coming back to life and remembering what once had made her happy.

She watched her grandson building a fire, settling her weary bones to one side, lost in thought. She was roused by his question and looked up across the fire at him. The question didn't hurt, in fact she smiled.

"Samael, that was his name," she began softly. "He was a large stallion, broad and strong. He was stern-faced, but warm. He was often gruff, but underneath it all he was a big soft sweetheart. He always made sure all of us were happy." She paused, soaking up her memories as they danced before her eyes. "Your aunt had him wrapped around her little tail. I've never seen him so happy as when she and Agares were born." She smiled wistfully in memory.

 

[Fatal Irony]

He relaxed visibly as she answered, not seeming bothered by the request at all. He laid back comfortably, settling in to hear any and all stories she might be willing to tell him. She seemed to need little prompting, as if she was as eager to tell him and he was to listen. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine his grandfather, stern and silent type. He imagined how large and imposing he must have been, how strong and protective. Yet he had a soft side, a gentleness that clearly showed to those he loved. Was that why Agares was so stern? The other stallion didn't even remember his father, but perhaps some things were hereditary.

"He sounds something like my father," he chuckled, opening his eyes and smiling at his grandmother. "What was my aunt like? Was she like Agares too, all grumpy and frowny?"
 

[Fatal Irony]

Naamah laughed at loud at the suggestion Berith was anything like the dour Agares. Even as foals the two siblings were night and day, and the idea that her daughter could be anything else was amusing. "No, Berith was something else entirely. She was a bright shining light in a dark world. She was laughter incarnate, a dancing specter that seemed hardly part of the world at all. She was more dream than reality. How she was born into this family I couldn't fathom, but perhaps the Spirits felt we needed a ray of hope." Her smile began to fade as she realized that ray of hope had been cruelly snuffed out. Perhaps the Spirits were simply cruel creatures who took amusement from her pain. She bowed her head resignedly. "She was better than all of us," she whispered. "Too good for this world."