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 Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 12:03 pm
 The market had not changed much in the time what he had been gone, which was to be expected. There were some new faces and some new tents, new shops having been set up as more people had found their way to the pantheon and settled into the town that had build around it.
Buildings that had been empty had now filled, some with signs having already been put up to inform the market-goers as to what they would find inside, and others clearly in the process to do so. There was one in particular that gave the Dragon King pause.
'Shadowmoon Alchemy'... Well, it did give him a good idea of who ran this particular establishment. Elik had never been good with potions. His attempts to learn from his aunt had been... well, rather destructive.
It did not take long before Xun Jiang slid his way inside the shop. Whisteria had not known that he had returned yet, so why not surprise her ?
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 2:53 pm
When he came in he would see a few lines of across the room and along the walls filled with various vials and jars. Mostly common remedies that people came in and asked for- salves for burns or bruises, potions for pain or other upsets, herbal teas and the like. Bundles of herbs and flowers at various stages of drying hung from the ceiling.
Whisteria herself sat behind a wide counter that no doubt doubled as a sort of exam table. Currently she was alone, with two tomes laying open on the counter in front of her. one was ancient that Xun would recognize, it contained all her alchemy research though the book was in rougher shape than he had last seen it. The second she was writing it, it seemed she was finally getting around to making a fair copy of it before the older tome became completely unusable.
The bells on the doorway chimed softly and she glanced up from her writing. The night elf certainly did look surprised to see him. "Xun!"
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 3:31 pm
The sights and the scents were familiar, really. While the layout and material was very different, it reminded him strongly of Whisteria's home in Darnassus - before the wintersabers had taken it over, of course. It took him back, in a way, to a place far away, where things had been indeed much different.
"Hello." He grinned, stepping inside properly. Good thing she had made sure the ceiling had been high enough for her, which meant he had little issue either. "Kinds of amazes me that this is still even in one piece, to be honest." He switched languages flawlessly, amusement visible in his tone. Really, she had been carting that book around for so long.
"How are you ?"
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 3:47 pm
"If you can count a fraying binding and loosing pages as in one piece." Whisteria set down the quill she had been writing with on the counter and put a cap on the ink jar. Once that was done she slid off the stool and walked around the counter to embrace him. "I've been alright, all things considered. What about you? I haven't seen you in weeks." When she spoke the first part he might hear a bit of uncertainty in her voice, like she was not really sure that she believed it herself.
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 4:08 pm
Yes, that eyebrow raise could only mean one thing - Xun Jiang was not buying it. At all. "You do not look so sure about that..."
Really, such was the thing with the closeness the sisters in laws had - it was impossible for one to trick the other, really. Even if he was not quite Illisia as she used to be, Whisteria would need to work a lot harder than that to try to fool him.
"I left to another world with Glyph. We went looking for a gem with a few other gods." There was no need to frighten Whisteria with the notion of failed hosts - not if she became close to Aska as it had looked like she had, at the party. "Have been washing sand out of my mane ever since I came back." Really, to call his hair anything but a mane was quite a misnomer.
"You can tell me what's on your mind ? I can see what I can do to help ?" He offered.
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 4:30 pm
Whisteria should have known he would not miss that. She moved to the door, flipping the sign on it over to 'Closed.' before turning back to face Xun again. "It is...ah...not really complicated but I am just not sure what to do." The night elf smiled weakly before disappearing into the back room for a moment a returning with another stool which she set next to the counter. It may not have been obvious to others but to Illisia, and thus Xun, it would be easy to tell that she was anxious. "I'll go put on water for tea, if you are going to stay for a little while?"
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 5:15 pm
Unsure what to do... That certainly was not usual Whisteria-behavior. He could only hope that whatever it was... No, even if Whisteria was about to show him a stone, there was little he could do about it. He could not refuse another's chance at rebirth, even if the cost happened to be the woman in front of him.
Still, as hyprocritical as it might look, he could hope. "I certainly can." He nodded, taking place on the offered stool, careful not to knock anything over with his tail and wings. Still, thankfully the night elven woman had not offered him an actual chair. That might not have ended well.
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 5:31 pm
Thankfully for Xun his assumption was very very wrong.
Whisteria disappeared into the back room again, coming back a few minutes later with a kettle and a pair of cups. "It will need to sit for a little bit, before it is drinkable." She set the kettle and cups on the counter, well away from her books. The last thing she wanted to do was knock something over and wreck her work. The few minutes out of his sight seemed to have given her time to get some composure back. Perhaps now she could handle telling him what the 'issue' was.
The night elf settled on the stool, adjusting her skirts as she figured out how best to break the news. "As I said its not bad..." She worried her lip. Might as well just spit it out. "You are going to be an uncle, eventually, I think." It was somewhat embarrassing that she did not know for sure after all this time of being medic, healer and at times a midwife. Though it was probably a lack of first hand experience, she supposed.
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 8:34 pm
Oh so it was not a gem. Good.
Wait.
WHAT ?
Good thing he had not been drinking anything yet. The idea of Whisteria being a mother was... Well, a little strange, he had to admit. She had never been drawn to it...
Wait. I think ? Oh dear. Oh dear. "How about we first do figure out if that is a yes or a no ?" That certainly was the logical first steps. Of course, every woman was different, so it was not exactly that easy to figure out. "What makes you think you might be pregnant ?"
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 9:00 pm
"My body just doesn't feel...right...lately." The druidess did not feel ill or anything, it just felt like something in her internal balance had been thrown off. Despite the change in scenery none of her routines or habits had really changed, except for the addition of certain activities with the handsome carpenter whose house she shared. "I haven't mentioned anything about it to Aska, because I don't know what to say." That and she did not want to get his hopes up and then it not be true, though on the flipside if it was true it might make him a bit sad as well.
She poured the tea for them both. "If it turns out to be true, I'll manage somehow."
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 9:20 pm
...And Aska was the potential father ?! He had to admit it was not surprising... But...
Well. That was going to be one fine mess. And he found himself once again very glad that Glyph had not hit jackpot, so to speak, before he'd changed. Aside from all the mess that would have caused, he was very mentally male and he certainly had no want to give birth the old fashioned way.
Been there, done that, in a way.
"Better to be sure before you say anything..." And well... Maybe he could tell ? He was very attuned to life, after all... Even more so than a druid would be. Eyes narrowed ever-so-slightly in focus as he reached out, lightly. There was Whisteria, of course, and him, and the passerbys of the markets, through these were easy to tune out.
And then there was something else. A tiny little flicker on his awareness. Not the weak life of Forge's gem, no - tiny, but bright. Strong. Healthy.
He was distracted when he was handed his cup of tea, and he pruposely waited for Whisteria to not be drinking anything before he finally spoke. "Actually, you might want to think about what to say."
That was the most polite way he could think about to break that particular news - well, the certainty of it, at any rate.
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Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 10:02 pm
The druidess sipped her tea, wondering just what Xun might be up to. Once she set her cup down, she got her answer. "Figures, this happens now..." Her free hand slipped down to rest on her belly, not quite sure what to think now that she knew for sure that her body sheltered a little life. "..with a man I am going to end up loosing sooner rather than later." Silver eyes closed and she sighed heavily. What would Aska think when she told him about this? Would he be able to be happy or would he worry about it being yet another thing he would miss?
From Illisia, Xun would have some idea of how difficult it for a night elf and a human to have a child together. From one point of view it was extremely lucky with such long odds, but in some ways that could seem rather unlucky as well. Her eyes opened again and she managed a weak smile. "At least I'll have a little piece of him that I can hold onto?" She had found herself in love with Aska without really realizing how it had happened. He was warm, gentle, made her laugh and always held her tenderly, stroking her hair and whispering to her when she woke up screaming from a soldier's nightmare. She had never found the courage to tell the man how she felt and now there was the matter of this new little life to throw into the equation. Even if he did not feel the same way about her, he deserved to know about the child at least.
Whisteria was more than a little scared about this, she had never thought of herself as a mother. Still, she would manage...somehow. "I'll have to think on how to tell him."
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Posted: Sun Jun 24, 2012 6:06 pm
So Whisteria had finally found a man she did love... Only for this to happen. Fate could, indeed, be a cruel mistress... But nothing could be done about that, now.
At least she was not holding out on the hope that Athlai would do the same thing that he had done. Really, case like his were... Very rare. His free hand reached out to gently squeeze Whisteria's in quiet reassurance.
Whatever happened, she would never completely be alone.
"Still... We need to prepare for her." Her ? He did not pause to question why he'd settled on the female adjective, or even notice that had done such a thing. "I can probably figure a few things out..." Like a crib. He knew a woodworker in the market.
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Posted: Sun Jun 24, 2012 7:52 pm
Whisteria had learned a long time ago that if fate wanted to take something from you it would. She would just enjoy what time she had with him and when the time came hopefully it would not be painful for him. The whole subject of Althai was one the two of them mostly avoided talking about. What would be would be, she supposed. She would not expect anything from the god, but for Aska- Healing owed the man at least a small measure of respect. After all he was giving up everything.
She did not even notice the tears prickling at the corner of her eyes as she smiled weakly at Xun. Thank you. "Aska will likely want to make a crib for her at the very least." Probably one that could be turned into a bed later; knowing how clever the man was he could probably manage just that. It would give her a small connection to her father, besides what Whisteria could tell her about him. The druidess kept a small flame of hope in her heart that he would at least get to see their child before he, well...
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Posted: Mon Jun 25, 2012 3:54 pm
The pin-pricks of tears did not go unseen, but he knew better than to comment about them, so he simply nodded in reassurance. Of course, he might not able to constantly be there, at her side - he was a god, after all, and he often had to be worlds away. But what he could give, he would.
"There are a few clothing stalls in the market. We can go check them, later." Having a god at her side would be one hell of a bargaining chip in her favor - he knew this from experience. Thankfully he knew all the essentials, so to speak... Through they would likely be very different here.
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