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 Posted: Wed Jul 24, 2013 1:07 pm
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Posted: Wed Jul 24, 2013 1:39 pm
They had not been pleased to see her, or more accurately they had not been pleased to see her without their daughter. All the same Hisoka, Torao and Sabella had allowed Lorenna, Fletcher and Thatcher enter under the condition that Lorenna locate Uwasa. At first Lorenna had thought this wouldn't be a problem but after an entire week of no leads things weren't looking good. Sabella had asked her fox friend Nichi to go out in search of her missing daughter as well. With nothing else she could do to help Lorenna had focused on running her network, just because one mare had gone missing didn't mean the world had stopped turning for everyone. As concerning and heart breaking as it was for those involved no one else cared.
There was news of an ulun'suti that had tried to stage an attack only to be killed himself, Lorenna requested the bird go to find out more information about the incident. It could have been an isolated occurrence but there was also a chance that it would be a precursor to something more. The kawani village had witnessed a sudden population surge but Dita reported that everything was calm among the humans. The good humans. The ones that did not beat the spirit out of their equine friends. Most news reported calm skies and that concerned Lorenna. With Uwasa's disappearance and Xelloss finding out about her network Lorenna knew that the mazoku could be doing anything at this very moment. She had no eyes in the jungle and the feeling that a storm was coming wouldn't leave her.
Lorenna tried to push this worry from her mind when Khaa returned to her. She dispatched him immediately with a small flock to go out and teach every bird and member of her network not to send messages without the password. They were still to act like they would send the message as normal to keep them safe but would instead immediately report the description of the one who tried to interfere to Lorenna. It would stop any further sabotage or traps from being set by Xelloss or other enemies. She sent Khaa because he knew the faces of everyone in her network. He would know who to trust with the password.
Two weeks had passed after Lorenna sent Khaa out. Business had gone on as usual but no news of Uwasa had arrived. It seemed it would be time for Lorenna to take the search on herself, but what of Fletcher and Thatcher? As she pondered over what to do about the twins she heard them shouting at each other outside the cave. Raising an eyebrow Lorenna slowly wandered to the entrance to see what was going on. She found the twins standing there drenched head to hoof and completely furious.
"What is going on?" She asked firmly without raising her voice. The authority that her tone carried would no doubt draw their attention.
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Posted: Wed Jul 24, 2013 6:30 pm
As the twins explained it had happened like this:
It had started out like any other day on the mountain. Fletcher and Thatcher had woken up just after dawn when the first of Lorenna's birds had arrived in the cave. It seemed that more birds arrived every day. That day the twins were surprised that all the birds had fit in the cave. Knowing better than to disturb Lorenna as she was gathering information and sending her network birds to complete one task or another the two colts had slipped away to go play outside as they always did. Only that morning when they had gotten outside the stallion's that they were staying with were fighting where the twins normally played. The kirin had told them that playing somewhere else would be better so Fletcher and Thatcher had decided to go exploring.
They didn't want to go down the mountain because coming up had been very dull and they didn't think going down would be any better. So they went up the mountain and found themselves around a bunch of steaming pools. They had decided to play by springing around the pools and avoiding getting wet even practicing leaping clear across them. And then...
"And then he pushed me in!" Thatcher accused shoving his brother roughly with his shoulder. Fletcher jerked away from Thatcher and glared at him.
"I did not! You fell!" Fletcher countered resisting the urge to headbutt his twin.
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Posted: Wed Jul 24, 2013 6:42 pm
It was at this point that Lorenna physically put herself between the twins. While they were not much smaller than her she sincerely doubted either one of them would risk landing a blow on her these days. Things had changed since their first meeting. Now she was helping them instead of being perceived as a threat. As she expected they stopped trying to get at each other but she could hear them making whatever angry noises they could come up with growing progressively louder. It was trying her patience.
"Enough! If you ask me you both needed a bath and you got one before I had to say anything!" She snapped before taking a deep breath. Children. She had never wanted children for exactly this reason. However, now she had them until her network could find their real parents (though that search was seeming more hopeless by the day) and she had to remember what they were. Yelling would get her nowhere.
"Look, if you two don't want to play together than one of you can go see is Miss Sabella needs any help and one of you can stay here and help me. If you can't decide who does what with that then I will decide for you." She made sure to stare both of them down in equal amounts as she spoke until they were both shuffling about unhappily. "So, would you two like to make up or would you two like to help out?"
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Posted: Sun Jul 28, 2013 12:25 pm
Fletcher and Thatcher looked equally sorry as Lorenna snapped at them. Their tails tucked in and their heads drooped as they looked to the ground. Lorenna had always been a bit cross but they rarely saw her this angry. Normally she was able to keep calm in even the most trying situations. The twins had always found that this was why people listened to her even when her ideas weren't normal. Seeing her angry was making the twins nervous. When she spoke again her voice was remarkably calmer though still serious.
Although the two could not see each other they still lifted their heads at precisely the same moment to peer at their caretaker from beneath long, dark lashes. Neither one of them felt settled even with her voice lowered and they couldn't seem to stay still. Lorenna's reasonable words were lost on them. The only thing getting through being "make up."
Thatcher wailed and buried his face in Lorenna's shoulder near the joint of her wing. "I'm sorry!" he cried rubbing his head up and down forgetting about the stumpy lumps of antlers just starting to come in for the season. "Please don't be mad Lorenna!"
Unlike his brother, Fletcher chose to come around to Lorenna's front to speak to her more like an adult though tears were running down his eyes and his voice shook. "We're both sorry. We won't fight again. We're sorry."
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Posted: Sun Jul 28, 2013 1:00 pm
Lorenna nearly toppled over when Thatcher ran his head into her as he was very nearly the same size as her. She could feel his tears, and what she suspected to be mucus, seeping into her coat as warm as sunbeams through summer tree branches. Words failed her as she looked down at the younger of the twins. They didn't come back to her even after Fletcher came around to the front of her. They were apologizing. Whatever reaction Lorenna had been expecting this wasn't it. What this was, was reaffirming that she should not have yelled at them. They were still children. Little things like getting pushed were still big to them.
"I'm sorry." She whispered slowly lowering her wings so that one rested lightly on top of Thatcher's head. "I'm sorry too." Lorenna stretched her neck out slightly so that she could press her forehead to Fletcher's. "It's not your fault." It was her fault. It was her fault that she had taken on more than she could handle. It was her fault that she had underestimated Xelloss. It was her fault that she had let a few victories get to her head. She was not untouchable. Her friends were not untouchable. They could be targeted just like she could and they could be killed.
"It's just not safe..."
The twins both pulled away slightly to give Lorenna quizzical looks but before they could ask what wasn't safe a voice called out. Lorenna, Fletcher and Thatcher all turned to find Sabella coming there way.
"Miss Lorenna. Children." She greeted bowing her head in the same formal way that she always did. "Torao and Hisoka wish to speak with you, Miss Lorenna. I can keep watch over the boys while you are away." Her golden eyes swept over the young cerynei. Their winter colored pelts were nothing like her daughter's but being near to them helped ease the pain of knowing her daughter was lost in the world, at least for a little while.
Lorenna was not so empty headed as to mistake this request as a request. She knew that if she ignored it Torao and Hisoka would come looking for her instead. She would have to look after the twins more later. "Yes, thank you Sabella." She said to the kirin before looking to the colts. "It would be best for you to stay with Sabella for now. I will be back before you know it." Lorenna met their eyes for a moment each to make sure they understood that she also meant this. She would be back for them but now she had business to take care of. With another word of thanks to her hostess Lorenna departed down the path that would lead to Hisoka and Torao. She found them standing by a small stream with Torao's head over Hisoka's neck while Hisoka's cheek pressed into Torao's neck. Distant and pained looks were plastered on both of their faces.
Lorenna didn't wish to interrupt them but she couldn't stand by watching them awkwardly either. She settled for clearing her throat to announce her presence.
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Posted: Sun Jul 28, 2013 1:33 pm
According to Lorenna's calculations it had been at least a month and a half since Uwasa had been discovered in the jungle. A month and a half. That meant it had been six weeks, forty-two sunrises and sunsets since anyone had heard from their daughter. Forty-two days of dangers that could have found her and taken her from this world altogether. Hisoka and Torao had tried to reassure themselves many times that Uwasa knew how to defend herself. They had taught her how to survive. It hadn't helped at all. The two stallions had put on strong faces for Sabella but shortly after she left Torao broke followed quickly by Hisoka.
"We shouldn't have let her go in the first place!" Torao growled. His eyes burned from nights of no sleep. "That flutter b***h could have found someone else to sacrifice!"
Hisoka scowled at Torao's choice in words. "Don't say such a stupid thing." He chided in their native language hoping for a bit of familiarity. Hisoka had nearly spent equal parts of his life in the kawani lands and in his mother land now but still he preferred his first language. He understood the local tongue almost perfectly now but it didn't have the same rich flavor. It was watching Torao run around in Hisoka's fox pelt instead of his rightful tiger pelt. "Do not say she is a sacrifice. Uwasa is still in the land of the living. Never tempt the gods by saying anything else.
Torao snorted. "Again with Hisoka's gods. We are cursed. You know this." They had been cursed from the moment they took in their first breaths of air. When they had accepted Uwasa's appearance as a blessing instead of a curse the gods had decided to do something else to hurt them. "They will hurt us in silence or voice. It doesn't matter." Torao jumped slightly as Hisoka suddenly pressed his head against Torao's chest.
"Don't say it. Do not say it." Hisoka mumbled. Torao frowned and bent to rest his head on Hisoka's neck in a soothing gesture. They were not there long before Lorenna cleared her throat. The noise caused them both to leap apart. They had not needed to sneak about hiding their relationship for years now but somehow getting caught always brought them back to the old times. Hisoka calmed first remembering that they were in a different place now. "Lorenna." He said his accent still rich even after years of practice. "You are done with your birds? Is there news?" Hisoka had always been slow to completely lose hope.
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Posted: Mon Jul 29, 2013 11:49 am
Lorenna didn't comment on the way they sprang apart and thankfully the awkward silence that promised to follow was cut short by Hisoka. Straight to business, it was easier that way, Lorenna only wished she had any news. "They have come and they have gone...but...none of them knew anything about Uwasa." There was no easy way to say it so she wouldn't try to sugar coat it or breeze by it with messages of hope. They were grown stallions. They understood the situation as well as (if not better) Lorenna herself. Acting like everything was fine at this point was just an insult to their intelligence.
Hisoka's jaw clenched so that he was unable to speak. He nodded his head slowly understanding what he had been told. He had been expecting this news but it was still hard to hear not that it had ever been easy. "You will let us know, yes? If you hear?"
Lorenna nodded her head. "I swear it. You'll never see me move faster."
Hisoka couldn't seem to do anything but continue to bob his head up and down sadly in understanding as he walked away leaving Torao and Lorenna. Torao broke his silence with a low growl before stomping over to Lorenna. He had had enough of all of this. "Leave tomorrow morning. Don't come back unless you find her." His golden eyes were as cold as the darkest of winter nights.
Lorenna considered protesting but decided against it. There was nothing that she could do here that she couldn't do elsewhere. She had only chosen to stay to be able to report back faster. She had officially worn out her welcome with the lack of good news. "Very well." She agreed with a polite bow of her head. "At sun up I will go." She paused then added, "With the twins."
As soon as Lorenna conceded Torao turned to follow after Hisoka. Without a doubt Hisoka wanted to be alone but Torao needed to make sure he wasn't doing anything drastic.
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Posted: Mon Jul 29, 2013 2:12 pm
With the twins. Lorenna had said it but she wasn't quite sure that she meant it. Uncertain of what she did mean Lorenna had decided to take a short walk to give clarity to her thoughts. The twins would be safe with Sabella and the truth of the matter was Lorenna wasn't sure she could say the same thing. Rather, she knew she couldn't say the same thing. She was a threat to the threats of the world. Whatever they were, wherever they were, once she interfered with them they would be after her. All this would have been fine if she had been born a burly draft stallion with sharp talons, long antlers and scales. If she were that sort of creature she could sit back and welcome all sorts of attacks. She could fight them off valiantly like the heroes of foals' stories.
Lorenna was no hero, not like that. She was small and built for hiding, not fighting. Her biggest asset was her mind not the force of muscles or the backing of some great herd. She was a problem solver, an engineer, a spy and a manager. She had been able to protect people but not on her own. She excelled in rallying forces not waging battle. She was the general at the rear of this war against those that bore ill will to the peaceful masses. She could not protect the two colts. She had been arrogant to think that she could.
She needed to bring them to a place where they would be safe and cared for. Somewhere on her network that she could reach easily should their parents turn up. The UnderGround immediately came to her mind making her pull a face. Definitely not. She loved them but Lorenna knew them to well to ever put a child in their hands. The twins could be rowdy enough now, putting them in Carmine's care would only make it worse. The village was a possibility. There were plenty of soquili to see to their care and comfort as well as to their protection.
Yes, the village would be best. She decided turning to head back to the cave, Sabella, and the twins. She would explain their departure to Sabella and the colts that evening and the village once they were on the road. It was only right for the twins to hear it without the others about. Besides, she was not their mother. She was their temporary guardian, in the end it was their decision. She could only help them make the right one.
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Posted: Sun Jan 05, 2014 10:24 am
The twins were bored. Sabella was nice enough but she was far from interesting. The twins liked Lorenna. She let them go out and play and took them to all sorts of interesting places. They had gotten into their fair share of trouble, perhaps even more than their fair share, but Lorenna always seemed to be there to get them out in the end. Even when she was cross with them she was the one they felt they could count on. Thatcher looked over at Sabella as she gently nibbled at some plant life. He scowled before jutting out his tongue and scrunching up his face. Boring Sabella. For all that her colors were bright she was exceptionally dull. Thatcher pulled his tongue back into his mouth and turned to see Fletcher watching him from where he lay on a fallen log, his knobbly legs bent on either side and his head flat against the old bark.
Thatcher wandered over to his brother and butted his shoulder lightly. Fletcher grunted and shifted so his little brother's nubs weren't digging into bone. "Is she really mad at us?" Thatcher asked his voice warbling with sadness. "Is that why she left us here with her?" Fletcher blinked and lifted his head slowly at Thatcher's questions. He stood up completely when Thatcher started crying. Thatcher pulled away when his brother moved and watched as Fletcher moved his legs over the log one at a time until he was standing next to Thatcher.
"No...or...I don't think so." Fletcher said rubbing his cheek against his brother's. "Someone just wanted to talk to her. Like the birds do." At least that was what Fletcher hoped. It didn't seem to reassure Thatcher much as he was still sobbing quietly.
They stayed like this for some time, keeping as quiet as possible to keep from drawing Sabella's attention. The last thing either of them wanted was for Sabella to butt in. As Thatcher was beginning to calm down the quiet sound of a mare clearing her throat caught their attention. Both twins turned to see Lorenna standing there. Thatcher snorted loudly as he tried to gather his nose drippings back into his nose. Fletcher grinned and nudged his little brother gently before exclaiming, "See! I knew she wouldn't abandon us!"
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Posted: Sun Jan 05, 2014 10:56 am
The moment Lorenna approached she knew she had missed something and from the looks of it it was something the twins wanted to keep secret. If not they would have been squabbling loudly and calling attention to themselves like they always did. What had happened? Lorenna cleared her throat to call attention to herself. Thatcher inhaled the mucus that had been leaking out of his nose loudly and Lorenna did what she could to ignore it. She could not, however, ignore what Fletcher said. It was like taking a spear directly to the heart considering what she was about to tell them. Hearing those words come out of that young mouth was making her resolve crumble.
"I need to speak with you two for a moment." Lorenna said carefully schooling her voice to keep it from cracking. Was this the right thing to do? Getting them to safety? Her mind was sure it was but another part of her said the smart thing was not always the right thing.
Fletcher and Thatcher traded curious looks. What did Lorenna want to talk to them about. Even if the two had the time to bounce all their ideas off one another they had both come to the conclusion that they would likely never get it right. Lorenna was always a few steps ahead of them. Instead of playing a guessing game they wandered after Lorenna as she lead them away from Sabella and out to an empty area in the trees. Once she seemed satisfied with the location the twins settled into their places, shoulder to shoulder, before Lorenna.
"Is everything okay?" Fletcher asked tentatively.
"Is it good news?" Thatcher asked after his brother hoping for something a little more cheerful. Fletcher couldn't blame his little brother for hoping for something good but the didn't stop Fletcher from rolling his eyes. If it was good Lorenna probably would have said it in front of Sabella.
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Posted: Sun Jan 05, 2014 1:17 pm
Lorenna shook her head slowly before looking over the twins before her. They seemed taller than they had been when she first met them but at the same time they looked so small. "It is more of an observation of my life." Lorenna said quietly looking away from the two. She wished there was a good way to say what needed saying. She would have to say it quickly or she feared she would never get the words out of her mouth. "It's not safe. It never has been. The further I go the more enemies I make and the more likely I am to be inviting danger on myself...and on you." Lorenna looked down into identical sets of innocent, green eyes. Fletcher's brows had come together as he tried to understand what she was saying and Thatcher had tilted his head to the side. As similar as they were Lorenna didn't have any troubles telling them apart. They were both so different in their expressions. Fletcher was more reserved than his brother. His brother often reminded Lorenna of Carmen, they were equally as wild and free. Lorenna sighed, realizing this was only making things harder.
"I cannot live with myself continuously putting the two of you in danger. I will continue the search for your mother, I will not abandon you, but I think it would be safer to leave the two of you with my friends in the human village. There are lots of young foals for you to play with and you will be well cared for. You could learn some skills there too. There are fighters and healers of great skill that would be happy to show you I'm sure. There's a beach and a lake near that you could play around to." The longer Lorenna spoke the more it felt like she was trying to convince herself that this was the right decision. "I...won't abandon you though. You can still contact me...through the network..." It was no use. It felt like she was betraying the twins that she had sworn to help.
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Posted: Sun Jan 05, 2014 1:47 pm
Fletcher couldn't believe what he was hearing. She wanted to send them away? Even after she had promised to look after them? It felt like he had just been dropped in something cold. He took a few steps away from her staring with wide, disbelieving eyes. "Is this...because we were fighting?" He asked remembering how distraught Thatcher had been moments ago. Fletcher hadn't thought much of it, the two had always scuffled every now and again, today they had just annoyed Lorenna more than usual. Was it so bad that she wanted them to leave forever? "We can be good. We won't fight anymore!"
As Fletcher spoke Thatcher remained strangely quiet. It had been a shock to hear Lorenna's news. He wanted her to take it all back. She couldn't drop them off like that. Not when she had gone through the trouble of picking them up to begin with. He didn't care about her reasons for it. All he cared was that she didn't want them anymore. Thatcher's eyes narrowed as he glared into the ground.
Lorenna had known that they wouldn't like the news but their reactions were making her feel more guilty than she ever had in her life. "No. No, Fletcher. It's not because of you two. It's because of Xelloss. He'll come back. He'll hurt you just to get to me. He's a kalona, that's what they do."
"Liar!" Thatcher shouted snapping his head up to glower at Lorenna. "You just got tired of us so you're leaving us! Just like everyone else!" Thatcher had never felt bothered by the fact that he didn't have any friends before meeting Lorenna. He'd had his brother and that was enough for him. Now that he knew that others could be part of their little world every person that had ever left them behind after just a day or two stung. Lorenna had been with them for months.
Lorenna frowned deeply more than a little annoyed at that accusation. She did what she could to relax her features before replying. "That isn't true, Thatcher. You know it isn't true."
Thatcher looked away, stubbornly.
Lorenna sighed and looked to the sky as the three slipped into uncomfortable silence. Lorenna simply didn't know what to do. That was the cause of all of this. She had no children of her own. She had never wanted children. She didn't know what to do with children beyond making sure that they were fed, drank enough, and got plenty of exercise. She had troubles communicating to them. She had grown up in a world of adults, she could scarcely remember what it felt like to be a child. All that was clear was that nothing she was trying now was getting through.
"I just want you to be safe." She said quietly as the wind rustled the trees. Why was that so difficult for them to understand.
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Posted: Sun Jan 05, 2014 2:33 pm
Fletcher thought he had been hearing things at first, Lorenna's voice was so soft. There was nothing that would lead Fletcher to believe he could have imagined the words though and so he spoke up. "We're safe with you." He challenged angrily though his eyes and face shone with fear more than anger. Fletcher didn't want to be left behind, not now, not ever. He'd grown so used to the life of travel he couldn't imagine staying put just because of some kalona.
Lorenna was shaking her head but before she could say anything to the contrary Fletcher stopped her. "You came back for us. You fight for us." How could he make Lorenna understand that. She had been fighting to help them even from the start. They hadn't wanted to go with her at first, they had wanted her to leave, but she had stayed. She helped them all the time and now she wanted to leave them with someone who may never fight for them at all. "No one else ever has..."
For a child Fletcher spoke a reasonable amount of sense. "Fletcher..." She looked at him closely and then to his inconsolable brother. "Thatcher...Both of you...please...one day fighting to help you out of trouble isn't going to be enough. No amount of messenger birds will be able to save you if a skinwalker has you by the throat." Lorenna took a deep breath, perhaps that was too strong of an image to feed a young mind but it was too late to retract the words now. "Don't you see, I am fighting for you. Right now I'm fighting for you. I don't want to send you away but I can't keep putting you in harms way. When you're older you can decide if you want to travel with me again but for now...the village is for the best." Older like Uwasa was. Just old enough to feed to the wolves. Would that happen to Fletcher and Thatcher too?
Fletcher looked crushed. She still wanted to leave them? Even though that wasn't what they wanted at all? How could she do that? He looked to Thatcher, his brother looked like he'd just been force fed one of those yellow lemons they had been gifted once. It was clear they were still on the same page. None of this was right.
The twins weren't pleased, still. It was no surprise it had barely been half an hour. She would give them the night to think about it and try again in the morning before they departed. "Come on, we can talk more later..."---------------------------------------------------
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Posted: Sun Jan 05, 2014 2:51 pm
It was as dark as charcoal when Lorenna was awoken by something tapping at her shoulder. Thinking it would be one of the twins coming to talk to her individually for the 7th time that evening Lorenna opened her eyes and mumbled a groggy, "Yes?" It was a confusing thing. A tiny, male voice answered her but she was staring at both of the twins, sleeping nested together in the light of the moon near the cave entrance, about as far away from Lorenna as they could get. She pushed herself to her feet so quickly that her head began to spin as she looked for the source of her disturbance. She found it sitting on a rock, a tiny song bird.
Lorenna collected herself quickly. One of her messengers arriving this late could only mean that there was urgent news. "Your message?" She inquired keeping her voice low to avoid disturbing the fawns. The bird relayed all the information it was carrying and once Lorenna dismissed it it flew off into the night. Lorenna thought her heart had just stopped. The bird had come from the Padmapani. Uwasa was alive.-------------------------------------------------------
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