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 Posted: Fri Feb 10, 2017 7:58 am
❖ Choosing Sides Word Count - 1170 words
Being back on the Isles was a comfort but at the same time she wanted to be on the mainland with her friends. Subira owed Jerami a trip to the ocean so that they could go swimming and her Uncle needed to get out of the house more. Then there was Ujana. Her mother's friend. A chuckle came from her at that. Now that she was a little older she understood just what that meant. Not that she saw anything wrong with it. In fact since Subira liked the leaf woman she encouraged it.
Her mother seemed happy when she was with the long haired beauty, even if she wasn't an Alk. It was certainly something to think about. There were times when she thought that her mother was doing things simply for her rather than herself. Which made Subira feel bad. If her mother had moved back to the Isles because of her, and that took her away from Ujana, then she would insist they move back. After all, she could always visit whenever she wanted. It wasn't like it was on the other side of the world. (Even if it was Subira wouldn't mind.) She could get a Kinfa to ride if the travel time was too long for her liking.
“What are you standing there day dreaming about my little flower?” Subira heard the voice of her nana. Niesh had always been so kind to her.
“I was thinking about mommy. She was happy on the mainland with her friends.” She giggled and turned to look at her grandmother. “There is a leaf woman that she has a soft spot for.” Subira was oblivious to her nana's prejudice against earthlings. At least.. she was. Until now.
“A what!?” Niesh seemed to frown as her antennae twitched.
“Uhm.. there is a woman there. Ujana. She's super pretty and mommy likes her.” She was confused by her grandmother's reaction and so her answer came a little slower; less excited.
“Your mother is losing her mind.” The older Alk growled out. “There is no way I would accept her being with an earthling. Especially if they became a mated pair.” Niesh would also never accept if Ariya tried to ask Aisha for children for such a match.
This made Subira frown as she looked at her nana. “What's wrong with it? Mommy is happy when she is with her.” The girl's shoulders lifted up slightly. What she couldn't understand was the hatred that seemed to come from the woman. In her eyes it would be the same as Rishima. Or even Jerami. Subira would love to have siblings to play with and if they just happened to be mixed who cared? She didn't and she was sure her mother didn't either. “Besides nana, they've already uh.. you know..” Subira giggled again as she made a vague motion in the air to symbolize the actions of lovers. It also made her cheeks color a slight orange. (A cute mix of her yellow skin tone and a red blush.)
Learning of this seemed to make Niesh angry and she shook her head. “That is not something to giggle about Subira!” The woman scoffed and turned away from her granddaughter so that she could look around. If she spotted Ariya then she was going to rip into her daughter with an anger she had never seen before. When the woman wasn't present she turned back to Subira. “It's an abomination! Your mother needs to find a nice Alk to be with and get her head out of the clouds. I knew taking you to see that.. that .. mongrel! Was a bad idea.” She spat at the ground and glared at nothing in particular.
This time it was Subira's antennae that bounced, though they seemed to lower a little afterward. “Mongrel? Who..” Her head tilted a little and she looked genuinely confused by the term. Of course she knew the meaning but she couldn't figure out who it was her nana was speaking of. Certainly not Jerami. The woman didn't know about him. So did she mean.. “Are you talking about Uncle Rishima!?” An anger surged through her. Never before had she had to face such discrimination against someone she cared about. Or if she had she had likely ignored it. “You take that back! Uncle Rishima is not a mongrel!” Her hands balled themselves up into fists.
“Ha! I knew it! Your mind has already been poisoned against your own kind!” Niesh pointed at her granddaughter accusingly.
The young alkidike reached out and slapped her nana's hand away as she practically snarled at the woman. How could she be this way? Her mother was nothing like her! And Subira herself certainly wasn't like her either! “I have not been poisoned, Nana! You have.” If she thought this way then certainly she belonged with those extremist alks! Why was she still here!? Subira would tell the elders about this. But first... “I'll have you know that I am loyal to Aisha. I intend to become a Sacred Heart to defend her and my people!” It had been a thought that she had been tossing around in her mind for a while and she had even spoken to her mother about it. However, hearing this garbage from someone in her family made her realize just how much it meant to her to become someone so important. “With my bow and arrows I will keep my home safe. Even from toxic people like you!” Subira yelled at her grandmother then turned on her heels to walk away. (More of a stomp really.)
With her hands still balled up at her sides she made a bee line toward the shore that was closest to the second Isle. Subira had every intention of telling the elders about the hate her nana spewed. She would have to inform her mother of what she intended too. That alone made her pause. Anger left her as she suddenly worried that if she told on Niesh it would make her mother upset. Subira looked from side to side, trying to figure out what she should do. If she wanted to truly become a Sacred Heart, someone that her people could look up to, then she had to do the right thing. Right? But what about those she hurt in the process? It was enough to make her feel guilty. “Maybe I should tell mom first..” Get her opinion and then go from there? It was likely the safer option.
“Then I can finally tell mom that I made up my mind too. She'll be happy.” Unlike her nana. The thought was a sour one and it left a bad taste in her mind. So Subira pushed it away. She would focus only on the good things. The girl would make sure her mother knew that she liked Ujana, encouraged them being together, as well as what path she wanted to take. All good things.
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Posted: Thu May 11, 2017 4:56 pm
❖ A note Word Count - 701
Since her mother was off spending time with her Leaf girlfriend Subira was enjoying her time in Jauhar. She was making friends and playing with native animals. It was a carefree time for her. While she missed her mother she understood the urgency in her traveling alone. Her earthling mom was going to have a baby, which meant that she would soon have a sibling!
Of course she knew that they weren't blood related but she didn't care. Subira saw Ujana as family so the baby would be too. The young alkidike just wished her sibling would come sooner. It was like torture having to wait. She wanted to meet them and see what they looked like. Not to mention she also wanted to play with them. She could show them how to ride on Matlal. Oh the fun they could have!
As she was thinking about all the things she could teach her new sibling she noticed someone approaching her. Not that it was an odd thing but she saw that they looked as though they had business with her. There was no smile on their face like there was with others who came near her. Subira tilted her head at the woman and gave her a curious look. “Hello.” She called out in greeting.
If she was lucky that would break the silence and then she could figure out what the woman wanted. All she gained from her small intro was a nod of the head. That made Subira blink with a bit of concern as she decided to move toward the woman to meet her half way.
“You are Subira? Ariya's daughter?” The woman asked.
“Yes..?” Subira seemed to question it. Why did this woman want to know so badly? Was there something wrong?
“This is for you then.” She held out a letter and once Subira took it she turned to walk away.
With the letter now in her hand the young alk flipped it over and inspected it as if there would be something to tell her what it was for. When she found nothing she opened it and set her pure black eyes to work. Reading the contents she quickly realized her mother's handwriting. It was enough to get her excited. With continued reading she soon learned the reason for the letter and squealed.
“Eeeeee!” Subira practically jumped up and down. “It's almost time!” She shouted to no one in particular.
Her mother had written to tell her that the baby would be born soon and that she wanted Subira to be there with them. Being included in the family moment meant a lot to her so she rushed to get her things. She was like a blur! Well, things looked like a blur to her as she ran past them. Her own excitement was driving her to grab things and stuff them into her bag. It was a miracle that she remembered to grab the essentials. Since this was going to be her first time traveling alone she made sure that she had enough food for herself. Usually it was her mother that did the packing for their journeys.
It was a good thing that she had been there before otherwise she wouldn't know the way. It spoke volumes that her mother trusted her enough to get there on her own so she didn't want to let the woman down. Despite the seriousness of the trip she couldn't help but to grin from ear to ear. Her baby brother or sister would be here soon and then the fun could start!
“I can't wait!!” Subira told herself with another squeal.
Moving faster than she ever had before she packed up her bag completely then grabbed her small sandals and attempted to put them on as she hopped out the door. On her way she passed by a friend who had come to visit.
“Can't talk I have to go. Baby!” It was all she managed before finally getting her shoes on and taking off at a run. It was a marathon not a sprint but she just couldn't take her time. Subira wanted to see her sibling so badly!
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Posted: Sun Apr 15, 2018 12:42 pm
❖ Life Changes Fast Word Count - 1175
Subira sat in the grass of a small clearing as she polished her bow. She was getting ready for the test her mother had laid out for her to make sure that she was as good as she said she was with the stringed weapon. Nerves and anxiety had her worried that she might fail and then be set back in her future training plans. To keep her mind off the idea of possible failure she had decided to care for her weapon properly but even that didn't seem to be working as well as it should. So Subira tried to think of other things. When she heard her younger siblings in the distance arguing like usual she felt the corners of her mouth pull upward.
They were enough to get her mind off the anxiety. Subira had been more than excited to hear that Eurig was on the way. She could still remember the day she had gotten the letter from her mother letting her know that it was time. The young alk had grabbed her bag and took off faster than a loosed arrow. Subira had even forgotten to grab a few things that day. She gave a visible wince but chuckled at herself. When her long pointed ears heard her brother and sister again, this time more muffled, she leaned her head back, her hands pausing in their polishing as she closed her eyes. The memory of learning about them was more fresh. It had happened more recently though. Her mothers had taken it upon themselves to go to the Isles and pray to Aisha. Subira hadn't been aware of their choice and Eurig had been with his earthling father. A time of the year that Subira hated.
A letter had been waiting for her then too. Only this time it didn't need to be delivered. It simply said that they would be back shortly and that if they were gone too long then she would be in charge of getting Eurig. A task she was all too happy to take on. If it meant seeing her brother sooner then she would do it. Of course she hadn't needed to go and get him. Ujana was back by then and able to get him herself.
With Ujana returning so did Ariya and with them were the two new babies. TWO! Subira remembered her eyes going wide and big grin breaking out as she practically rushed her mother to demand to hold them. They were so cute! Subira had hogged most of the attention the two got for the rest of the day then. She had absolutely adored her little twin siblings. Now, while she still loved them to bits, she adored them a little less. As babies they were far more quiet. Now that they were older they argued so much and picked on one another. She was almost certain that it was a challenge between the two to see who could irritate the other more.
Opening her eyes she smiled and brought her attention back to the bow she polished. Her dreads moved forward with her and fell into her eyes. It was a surprise to her since she had always kept her hair smoothed back. Another change in her life with the passing days. Subira had convinced Ujana to do her hair in a similar fashion to her earthling mother's and so she needed to grow her hair out in order to do so. Which meant the shorter strands at the top had more growing to do before they could be tamed as the others had been. Said decision to grow her hair out was one she had regretted at first since the twins had pulled on her dreads whenever she held one of them. Which is likely why both of her mothers kept their hair well tamed and pulled back. Even Eurig had kept his up.
Laughter filtered through the trees and reached her ears. It was the twins. Clearly they had stopped their bickering and found something that they both enjoyed. It made her feel better when her siblings got along. And she certainly knew that it made Ujana and Ariya feel better. It meant that there was no need to yell or punish either one of them... Well, unless they had gotten into something or were picking on another kid.
With her nerves well taken care of she took a deep breath and started to work on her bow again. Polishing it would make it look amazing and with an amazing weapon one felt like they could do anything. Subira needed that confidence. While she didn't doubt her skill with the thing she did doubt her ability to remain confident when her mother was watching her. There was something about it that made her feel like she should do better. Not that either parent had ever told her she was bad at something, but she didn't want to disappoint them by failing. Subira didn't want to disappoint her siblings either. Being their older sister meant that she had to lead by example.
What better way to do that then to have the best polished weapon and unbreakable confidence when she was tested? It would certainly go a long way to impress them. Her family was the only ones she wanted to impress. Well, that was a small lie. She did want to impress Aisha, but she knew that her mother tree was always watching even when Ariya was not. So impressing her would be much harder. Not that she wasn't up to the task.
As her hand made the millionth round she stopped and put down the small scrap of fabric she'd been using. Her black eyes looked closely at the wood before turning it over and inspecting the other side. When she was sure that every inch had been polished to perfection, or as close as it would get, she nodded her head and placed the bow on her lap again. Subira took to putting her things away, the polish, which was just a fat from a forest creature, he rag, and the arrows with fresh feathers.Once those were put away she grabbed her bow again and got to her feet. Her free hand moved to dust her bottom off before flicking some strands out of her face. She was ready to do this. “Keep watching Aisha, things are going to get interesting.” She sent the words fondly to her mother tree then turned to head toward where her mother had told her to meet her. It was time to test her skills as well as her determination to progress and if she took her mood and mind set as any indication about how she would do.. Then she had a feeling deep in her gut that she was going to pass and prove that she had more than what it took to become a sacred heart. More than what it took to defend her people, her family. Subira just knew that she had it.
(( Here Subira recalls the changes in her life. The birth of Eurig then the twins. And finds that it is her family that keeps her grounded. Thoughts of them bring her an inner peace that keeps her anxiety of failure at bay. She is more than positive that she will pass the test. ))
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