Welcome to Gaia! ::

'Around here somewhere' was a pretty accurate description of Lessia's current position, or rather, positionS. As much as her mother might be disliking the wind right now, to Lessia it was the balm to a wounded spirit. Not that her's was wounded or anything, it just sounded poetical to call it that.

Regardless, Lessia was in a great mood, running full-out in a wide circle around the outer edge of the meadow. It was truly glorious, the wind at her back, speeding her along; then as she turned a curve, she was running into it, her long red hair trailing back like a stream of blood against her white back. It was a primal challenge one moment, a melding of souls the next. Ooh, how she loved this amazing world she lived in!

It was with gay laughter that she raced up the curving hill of the plain, laughter that continued in delight as she suddenly came upon the other Soquili out taking in the afternoon breeze. "Mummy!"

Slowing as she did so, the mare bounded forward towards the familiar form, a wide grin on her face. No matter how recently she'd seen her parents, it was always great to see them again; in this case, it had been weeks since she'd seen either, so coming unexpectedly upon her mother was nothing if not a treat. "What are you doing all the way out here, Mum? But it's great to see you!"

"Sure, I think I can make room in the schedule for that." Grinning, Lessia fell in step beside her mother, more than willing to abandon her cavorting to play catch up. It was such a comfortable thing, to be able to spend time with family once in a while...even if Loveless had an agenda. And Lessia was quite sure that Loveless has such an agenda; after all, if she herself were in her mother's position, she too would have one!

Like mother, like daughter, in both looks and manners in many ways. White where Loveless was black and with red hair rather than blonde, the two could otherwise be carbon copies of one another. The same height, the same proportions, even the same length of horn; coloration aside, it was easy to see where Lessia got her looks from.

And, her father would say, her tomboyish ways.

For the moment, though, she had managed to rein herself in rather beautifully, if she did say so herself! "But I'm afraid I'm a rather horrible source of information for you, Mummy; I haven't seen 'Scale or 'Thone since before I last saw you and Papa. I don't know what they're up to, but I'm sure its interesting, to them. No doubt 'Thone is lurking in the shadows somewhere and 'Scale is combing her long, beautiful hair." This was said with a straight face, but her ghostly eyes were dancing. As the self-proclaimed messy one of the family, she couldn't resist poking fun from time to time at her better-groomed siblings; still, it was obvious that all the comments were in good humor. "Me, though?"

At that, she glanced around, smiling at the description of their current location. "Oh, I don't live here, Mummy; I'm just passing through. Isn't this a lovely meadow, though? If you go all the way down to the south end, there's this craggy hill that ends in a cliff over the river; it's very dramatic and cool looking; Seyx and I discovered it a few days ago and have been having the best time dive-bombing the pigeons. You should really try it while you're here."

With that, she raised her wings to fold them behind her head, a mannerism she inherited from her father. "I've been up to the same old, same old, for the most part. But that reminds me, did you know that there are Soquili that live IN the lake? I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it, but there are real, honest to goodness Soquili that have fins and live underwater but can walk on land. They smell a bit fishy, but can you imagine? Damn but that would be a neat capability."

Discovering the kelpi had been the most amazing experience of Lessia's adult life so far; she'd meant to go home and tell her parents all about it, but with one thing and another coming up to distract her in the meantime...yeah, she was sure they'd understand. But it was still exciting to talk about now!

Though before she got off on any tangents, the least she could do was return the attentive favor. "But what have you been up to lately, Mama? Have you seen Daddy since us kids up and went our own ways, or Grandpa? Anything new and exciting going on with you? Let's hear the news!"

So her mother already knew of the kelpis, then? Well, at least that meant that her story was likely to be believed, even if it did take some of the dramatic effect out of the story. Ah well. "I hear you there, their fins are awesome! And you have to agree that having fins on your head would be a lot easier to keep in order than a mane." This with an amused look at her own tresses; unlike her mother's neat braid, her own mane was grouped loosely in many mismatched braids and twists, some half-undone and all of them in some way tangled. She'd never been fond of long hair, and the sole reason she kept it like this was because she knew it would kill certain members of her family if she were to chop it off. That didn't mean that she had to keep it tidy, though!

That considered, though, she had to concede that there were distinct advantages to be a kalona; she had the wings to fly and the stamina to stay in the air for hours. "I still think it would be fun to try, just for a little bit."

That subject was abruptly changed at her mother's query about Seyx, the nature of which caused Lessia to burst out laughing. Good grief, Seyx, her romantic interest? There would be the odd couple of the century! "No, Mummy, he is NOT my boyfriend, he's my buddy. You remember me talking about him when I was a filly, don't you? Though I think that I mostly called him my 'feather friend'? That was Seyx. We're world exploration pals and he's a great chum, but I'd sooner cut off my wings than consider anything more than that with him."

It was rather amusing to note how it was with parents with adult children; they always automatically assumed that any acquaintance or friend of the opposite gender was a boyfriend, girlfriend, lover, potential lover, or interested party. Parents could be so predictable sometimes! "I'm not seeing anybody, nor am I interested in seeing anybody or anything like that. Sex might be the greatest thing slice sliced bread for some members of our family," this with a conspiratorial wink at her mother, "But I'm not ready or willing for the potential responsibility of foals at this point in my life. Much as I am pleased that you and Daddy got lucky on the first try, I just don't feel like taking that chance myself. And when I do, it will NOT be with Seyx."

That topic firmly closed, she was free to switch to her mother's announcement with no small amount of delight. "You and Daddy decided to officially commit monogamy? Mum, that's wonderful, I'm so glad for you! You two work so well as a unit, that's great! Though I have to wonder what tricks you pulled to get Grandpa Ariston to accept that you would voluntarily tie yourself down to one partner." This was said with a teasing grin; though Lessia didn't follow the lifestyle of her grandfathers herself, she adored both of them a great deal and loved to tease them for their 'sage advice'. They were a predictable pair, but the important thing was that they loved their families and allowed them to do their own thing...even though she knew Ariston cried whenever he saw is granddaughter's hair!

"So, does this mean that you and Daddy have set up a permanent residence somewhere? And are there any plans of expanding the family in the near future? Remember, it's your duty as a mother to keep us all informed on these things, least we inadvertently smoosh a sibling in the future not knowing who they are."

Growing up, Lessia had always been the child that went for the shock value factor. If there was something that was guaranteed to make someone else shift, stare blankly, or cough and want to change the subject, Lessia was the one to say it. Granted, she liked best to make her sister stammer or to shock her grandfathers, but when it came down to a pinch anyone was fair game, up to and including her beloved mother.

So Loveless' stammering and blank stare were delightful, causing Lessia to laugh and nose her mother affectionately. "Geez, Mummy, you look as though we're supposed to be innocent little foals forever! I'm old enough to have kids of my own, you know, so it would be pretty bad if I didn't know how they were made. Besides, how could I not with grandfathers like Ariston and Guilian? I love you, Mummy, but you are the sole voice of conservatism in this crazy family of ours."

This was spoken with a beaming grin, 'crazy' being a questionable compliment but certainly true for their family, and Lessia loved it. So many families out there were banal, it was great to have some excitement without having family drama. Well, without having BAD family drama.

Skipping ahead a little bit, she twirled around and gave her mother a grin. "Oh, I wouldn't pull MY wings off, Mum, I'd just pull his off. I'm bigger than him and have point teeth, so it wouldn't be that hard. But I happen to prefer him with his wings intact, as he'd have a much harder time keeping up if I rendered him wingless. But he's a rational fellow, much more rational then me for all his being flutter-brained. He knows better than to fall in love with me."

Entertaining as that topic was, it was much more interesting to dwell on her parents' situation. All three kids had known growing up that their parents weren't 'together' in the traditional sense, and also had (or at least Lessia had) been aware that the kids weren't entirely planned. Those facts being what they were, it didn't take a genius to observe the way that the two had behaved when the kids were young, with Antony staying with the family, backing up Loveless as an authority figure (though usually the other way round; Lessia loved her Daddy, but it certainly wasn't because of his authoritarian streak...or lack thereof), the two of them teasing each other about everything under the sun...it had been a very domestic setting, and the roles of Husband and Wife had been very ably filled, in Lessia's opinion.

So it was all good to hear that they were going to be official. Having half siblings just made families complicated, to her way of thinking!

"Well, in that case I wish you the best of luck with your wandering, Mum, though you have to admit that it would be easier for us all to meet up if there was some sort of home base. Much fun as it is to roam around the world, if we didn't all have wings there's no way that we'd ever find each other again. I know that in some families, that's good, but it does make things needlessly complicated in the case of ours where we LIKE to see each other once in a while." Granted, she was probably the worst of all when it came to roaming, but still. "And I promise that if there's ever a loop to be in, you'll be the first to know, Mum."

Listening to Loveless, Lessia couldn't help but grin at her mother's wandering tone. One minute gentle, the next minute anxious, one minute suspicious, the next resigned...she sounded like such a MOTHER! Granted, she WAS a mother, but it was so funny seeing her mother behave like this, and it always had ever since she'd learned what sort of Soquili her mother had used to be. That was what love could do to you; even the most hardened and unpleasant of Soquili could become gentle and affectionate mothers...who could still kick-a** when needed!

Reflecting on that, Lessia gave her mother an affectionate nuzzle. "Believe me, Mum, I'll be fine; and not only that, 'Scale and 'Thone will also be fine. We might be atypical, but we're tough where it counts and are perfectly capable of not ending up alone and miserable. Feel free to cease any and all anxieties." Not that she would, of course; if parental worry was that much like a light switch, then there would be a great deal more 'apron-stringless' Soquili running around out there!

But she was grinning as she spoke. "So you can channel all that energy into home-hunting with Daddy, then when you've found what appear to be suitable digs you can hunt us down again and we can all have a big family reunion, to be followed up by smaller, individual visits at proper random intervals. It'll be fun."

Having said that, she danced ahead again a bit, flipping back her long hair as she answered her mother's last question with a careless, "Can't really say for sure at this point. I haven't gotten any inspiration yet, so we're playing it by ear. I've been kinda curious to see if there's any truth in there being FISH Soquilis now, though; after all, if there are kelpis, then why not true fish-Soqs?"

At Loveless' description of herself having training wheels, Lessia could only grin at the ensuing mental image. It was no wonder she got along so well with her mother, the two of them thought along nearly identical veins! Indeed, if the moment weren't so serious then Lessia strongly suspected that mother and daughter alike would have both burst into hysterical laughter; after all, the family that laughed together was amused together!

So she only grinned, giving her mother a cheeky salute with one wing. "Never fear, Mummy dearest, I'll be sure to let you know the next time I have an itch to explore the far side of the world. But really, it's an amazing thing to see, don't you think?"

At that, she turned and piroetted again, twirling around before flopping down on the ground at her mother's feet and grinning engagingly at the black mare to join her. "I mean, you're not quite as 'typical' as, say, Seyx's mother when it comes to the whole family life thing, but you have to admit that you're more restricted now than you used to be. Wasn't freedom amazing when you were younger, Mum? And wasn't seeing the world amazing?"

Tomayto, tomahto, potayto, potahto. It wasn't that Lessia doubted her mother, it was more than she simply didn't think that they were looking at things the same way. Escapades, indeed...somehow, she couldn't quite imagine her parents going on 'escapades'. Roaming about, yes, but escapades were beyond their natural state, if she did say so herself. Still, she was nothing if not a most indulgent daughter, so she merely grinned teasingly at Loveless as she said, "If you say so, Mum."

Nothing had been more guaranteed to annoy her than a response of that nature when she was a child, so she enjoyed throwing it at her parents once in a while now that she was an adult!

Though in all honesty, she did adore her relationship with her parents, especially her mother. Though Loveless had been very much the disciplinarian of the family, she and her eldest daughter had formed a strong bond that, now that Lessia was grown, was in many ways that of friends beyond simply mother-daughter. As far as she herself was concerned, there was no better way to be, and she acknowledged Loveless' comment on that score with a nuzzle of her own. "I don't know, you had your moments of strictness, Mum; I mean, how many times did you get all stoic and tell me that I couldn't gnaw on 'Thone and 'Scale's limbs and tails when we were younger? That was rather authoritarian of you, I'd say, if not quite to to murderous magnitude that you used to be."

That time, the teasing was mixed with some honest respect. Though in many ways an awkward subject, all three of the kids knew of their mother's past and their father's rather unique way of dealing with Loveless as she was. It was a fascinating study for Lessia especially, as as long as she'd been alive her father had been the laid-back, non-violent, non-confrontational one. Loveless made sense as a fighter, but her cuddly father never had!