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 Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2014 9:41 am
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Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2014 10:01 am
 Fiacha careened wildly around the tall trees that spired out of the thick forests that bordered their herdlands with reckless abandon, a broad smile across his muzzle as his spirits soared almost as high as he did.
He had heard stories of his aunt Fianna from his aunts - more than once been compared to the spirited filly who left the herd when she was younger than he was now - as soon as her wings could carry her above the treeline and her nose could reach over the thick bushes that grew on the Western border.
He'd wondered about her. Wondered what it might have been like growing up with an aunt like her with such a sense of adventure and force of personality. But he never expected her to come home - he'd been told as much, bitterly, by his aunt Deirdre. Though his father had made the promise some day to find her. He never expected it to be this soon. To be now. And he couldn't be more pleased that he was the one bringing the news to his father.
"Father!" His voice rang out clearly as he scanned the fields and through the trees for the familiar silhouette of his sire. Unfortunately, the stallion's green blanket and brown fur was often difficult to pick out through the trees.
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Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2014 11:53 am
Ethan looked up from where he had gathered a few fallen apples from a tree he made a point to frequent on a daily basis now that fall was coming. He could hear his son's voice ringing clearly out as he passed obliviously overhead and snorted with a shake of his head.
He could tell from his tone he was excited, but it wasn't an emergency, so he waited a few moments before calling back to him.
"O'er here, Fiacha!"
He heard a flurry of wings as the young stallion tried to turn too quickly, and a rustle in the canopy as he broke through the closest to Ethan's voice rather than find a better opening.
"How many times do I have to tell ye, ye can prolly find me better on hoof than in the air in the woods. And look around for an opening rather than just crashin' through. You'll wind up with less splinters that way." He chided good-naturedly.
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Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2014 11:57 am
Fiacha eventually got back on all four hooves just about ten feet from his sire, who had a bushel-full of delicious looking apples slung over his flanks.
He didn't bother to n** the twigs and leaves out of his mane and wings, and rolled his eyes at his father's lectures.
"I found you didn't I? I know you'll answer if ya hear me callin." He huffed.
"But that's not what's important, da! It's Fianna - she's back! She's in the herdgrounds!"
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Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2014 12:14 pm
The last word had barely spilled from Fiacha's mouth when Ethan was already moving, galloping back towards the herdgrounds with wide eyes and a hammering heart.
Of everything he had done, all of his life, the thing he regretted most was leaving Hunter behind unknowingly when she was carrying his foals. He had left three daughters to grow up the same way he did - never knowing their father. While he had returned, the damage was already done and they were already grown - he was still trying to make things back to Deirdre... but Fianna had left. He had seen her briefly - oh so briefly - and she had barely given him time to explain when she had flown off again in a flurry at a speed Ethan could barely comprehend never having known what it was like to fly.
He had always hoped that some day he'd see her again - he had promised Deirdre he'd do everything he could to bring her home.
And it seemed as if the spirits had smiled upon him. He had only begun to start sending his own newly bonded familiar out to look, started asking questions of neighboring herds. He didn't know if word had reached her or if he was merely blessed, but as he emerged from the woods, he saw her - standing, speaking with a stallion he didn't recognize with wings like a dragonfly. They both turned their heads sharply as he emerged, and he could smell the anxiety around Fianna.
He slowed his approach, putting on a careful smile as he walked up to them.
"Fianna... I cannae tell ye how happy I am ta see ya..." Ethan began with a frog in his throat.
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Posted: Tue Nov 04, 2014 6:46 pm
Note: Fianna & Dae'Ruil are maxed outFianna wrestled with a complicated mix of emotions as she saw Ethan emerge from the woods. She shifted from hoof to hoof and her wings twitched as she restrained the impulse to take flight and not deal with her emotions right then.
But she took a breath and forced herself to stay put. She'd run before - and what had that accomplished? She wasn't going to run from Ethan or her home again. Not... without at least speaking with him, make sure that he came back here for the right reasons.
She had grown since then. She had had foals of her own - partially thanks to how vulnerable she had been after she met Ethan... she had fought for what was important to her, and she faced the vulnerability of opening herself up to be loved and to trust Dae'Ruil.
She snorted though, eyes darting before huffing a sigh and blowing the incessant piece of mane from her eyes before deliberatly folding her wings and walking to close the gap between her and her father.
"Ethan," She spoke, the brogue a little thicker in her voice. She wouldn't call him 'father', though. She wasn't ready for that/
Dae'ruil planted a genuine but respectful smile on his face as he kept a few paces behind his fiancee. Decorum was important, and it was Fianna's place to be the one to greet her father. He... had a vague memory of seeing this stallion from afar when Fianna had first found him, but had never had the honor of meeting him himself. There would be time for that now, he hoped. He had much that he wished to speak to the stallion about now when there was time.
He understood that Fianna's mother had raised her and was much closer to her... but it was difficult to move past customs. And asking a mare's sire's permission... was the way it was supposed to be done.
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Posted: Tue Nov 04, 2014 9:05 pm
"Fianna..." Ethan smiled with his brows knit. She was a striking mare - so much of her mother was in her. She had stolen his breath when he'd seen her years ago when it sparked his need to return home. But seeing here again now... he was so proud and so ashamed at the same time.
"It's good ta see ye. I... I don't suppose ye got the feelers I was puttin' out?" He flicked an ear backwards dubiously. "I'd wanted ta find ye, but I couldn't leave while there were still growin' foals.. I take it ye've met Fiacha..."
He shook his head, "Look, b'fore you start talking and asking some very justified things.. lemme apologize. I didn't have much time last we met. I know what ye probably think o me, and I earned that. I was stupid - and I made a mistake in leaving. It never occurred to me that the spirits would have blessed Hunter with foals. Had I known, I ne'er would'a left. You have my word of that. And I know I can't make up for mah absence, can't give you your foalhood back with me bein' there. But I've returned now, and I've madet this my home, and takin' yer mom as mah lifemate. I'm not askin' fer your forgiveness. Maybe... maybe I don't even deserve it. But it was thanks to you, Fianna, that I came t'realize where my responsibilities - and mah heart - lay. And it's thanks to ye that I came back here. I searched for years tryin' to find my place in the world by findin' my sire, but it was here that I really belonged, not with the family that didn't raise me and didn't make me who I was, but with my family that was - mah mum, Rosemary who's joined us here... and the family I've made."
He took a breath, watching Fianna's wavering green eyes, stubbornly holding back tears, "And I know ah'd be a hypocrite ta expect ye to think of me as any bigger part in yer life than my sire in mine. I don't... I know you came back here to prolly see yer sisters an' ma... and I don't wanna get in the way o' that. So if'n ye'd rather I keep out of your way... I'd understand. But I hope that isn't the case. You mean a lot ta me, Fianna, an I am sorry I wasn't there." He finally let out the breath. Regret and similar speaches had tumbled through his mind for years ever since she had left so abruptly after their meeting. For better or worse... at least he had the chance to speak his mind.
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Posted: Wed Nov 05, 2014 2:32 pm
Fianna held her tongue - something she may not have been capable of the years ago when she first met Ethan. She let Ethan talk, actually listening to his words as much as they sometimes pained her, or as much as she wanted to interrupt him sometimes. She hated herself for listening a little bit, but she had to give him the chance. Deirdre hadn't forgiven him, and it was because of him that she had grown up to be such a bitter mare. Right? She had grown up in the same herd, and while she held it against her sire, she wasn't consumed with the same bitterness as her sister. Still, if he had stayed here - if he wasn't so stupid, then maybe their lives would have been happier... different...
She couldn't help but cast a look over her shoulder at Dae, who gave her a supportive smile.
She also might never have met Dae'Ruil.
Or maybe she would have. Maybe even having two parents at home wouldn't have been enough to keep her here in her youth when her wings felt like they'd catch fire if she didn't stretch them and fly.
And suddenly, she realized a bit of what Ethan meant. That whether or not Ethan had stayed, she was her own mare. She couldn't look back and ask "what if". She might have been different if she had stayed home, but she was proud of who she was now. She had seen rough times, done things she was ashamed of - but there had been good that had come from the bad.
Finally, she sighed, and met the stallion's eyes.
Finding the right words, though.... She huffed again, blowing a stray lock of hair from her face again. "You don't have t'keep outta my way." She said quietly at first.
"This... this is your home too, Ethan. I can't blame ye for leaving, and then tell you t' keep away. But so help me, you better try to make things square with Deirdre. You hurt her. Worse'n me. I had the world for a time. I saw what it's like out there. I... I guess you did too. But she stayed here. She felt yuir loss more'n I did. You not bein' here is what sent me out into the world, but it's not what kept me there. I could've come home a long time ago but I had my own... affairs." She swallowed, thinking of Garret... of Cayden... of that mysterious stallion Einar that still sometimes made her stomach twist in guilt. She sometimes didn't think she deserved Dae - but he brought out the best in her and had somehow managed to convince him otherwise, and she looked forward to a life with him. Taking it easy... for a bit at least.
"I dunno how long I'm gonna stay. I doubt forever, but... I need to spend some time here. I want Dae'ruil to see what it's like... oh... yeah, Ethan..." She nodded back over her shoulder, "meet Dae'ruil."
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Posted: Wed Nov 05, 2014 2:38 pm
Ethan smiled. It wasn't a perfect reunion, but it never could have been. But she was giving him a chance, and that's all he could have ever asked for. She wasn't leaving, she wasn't even wanting him to avoid her. He... wouldn't force himself on her - crowd her or smother her, but he was so happy to hear that she would be staying for a time at least.
"It's a pleasure, Dae'ruil," Ethan smiled at the other stallion, but kept his attention mostly on his daughter,
"I'm glad t'hear yer stayin around, Fianna. Please, lemme know if there's anythin' I can help you with. It.... honestly is so good to see you. If you're going to be around, I think it would be wonderful if ye would like to meet Rosemary - my mum, and your grand-dam. She's come to stay with the herd, and I think you two would get along so well. She has a lot of stories she can tell you of where our family comes from. You can usually find her around the Western side of the herdgrounds - in the meadows where there are the big patches o clover. "
He heaved a breath, "And of course I promise ... I'm trying every day I can with Deirdre. I know I hurt her, an I know it doesn't matter that I never meant to."
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Posted: Wed Nov 05, 2014 2:45 pm
Fianna chewed on her lip - a nervous habit, weighing his words. "Yeah... I'll be around for a bit. It's... been too long since I've been home. Home's important, ya know? I didn't realize that when I was a filly and so anxious to get out." She shook her head, a little annoyed at herself for opening up almost too easily to this stallion who should be a stranger. But he was just acting too damn nice. It was a little infuriating.
He'd changed. She could see it in the way he carried himself, in the words he used.
Had it really been so long since she met him the first time?
Maybe it was her fault as much as Ethan's that Deirdre had grown up to be so bitter.
Now wasn't the time for that. She owed her family a stay here as much as Ethan did.
But she pricked up at the mention of Rosemary. She vaguely remembered a mention of her when they had met last, and her interest even then had almost been piqued. Answers she had wondered at from the mouth of another mare who wasn't to blame.
She smiled a little, "Maybe I'll go talk to her." She shifted from hoof to hoof for a moment, glancing back at Ethan. "We'll talk more later, I promise. For now... I just need a bit of time to think, okay?"
"A thousand pardons - I do hope that I am not interrupting, but, ah..." he fumbled for a proper honorific. "Lord Ethan," He smiled sheepishly as he saw Fianna roll her eyes dramatically, "If I might have a word with you for just a moment if my lady Fianna is going to take her leave?"
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Posted: Wed Nov 05, 2014 4:02 pm
Ethan dipped his head to Fianna as she turned to walk away, silently wishing her well, and bolstered by the knowledge she'd be around.
he turned his attention to the newcomer with a quick shake of his head, "Oh, no, ah, Dae'ruil was it? Ah'm no lord. I... I might be the alpha o this herd, but I don't deserve that title."
He wasn't quite sure what to make of the stallion or his company with his daughter - he seemed almost quixotically formal, but Ethan was the last soquili to judge, and he could hardly say he even really knew Fianna let alone the sorts of soquili she'd be friends with.
"But o' course you can have a word." He smiled.
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Posted: Wed Nov 05, 2014 4:45 pm
Somehow, Dae'ruil looked embarrassed. "I do apologize... I am not very familiar with the honorifics of this land. I meant no offense, sir. But it truly is a pleasure and an honor to meet you - the father of Fianna."
he took a breath, stepping up to Ethan boldly, forcing himself to meet the older stallion's eyes before dipping his head an in all-too-formal bow. "I have traveled with my lady Fianna for many a season now, and as we have traveled and shared adventures and struggles, she has in so doing also claimed my heart. She has such a fierce and bold soul, one that shines so brightly as to even kindle my own, once-nervous heart. She has been a true inspiration in a way I am ashamed to say that I did not one believe a mare could be. She is both wild and honorable, and truly everything that I admire in another."
He took a breath, not yet risking a glance upwards for fear of a look of disapproval. He needed to get it out before he lost his nerve. Once upon a time, he probably would have never had the courage to do this at all. "I know that we have only just met, ah, Alpha Ethan, and I do not know the rituals of this land, but where I am from is is requred for a stallion to speak with his intended's father and it pleases me so much that I am able to do so now. If you would have me, sir, I wish to ask for your daughter's hoof in marriage. I... I have already spoken to her of my own intentions, and it filled me with such happiness that she saw me worthy. But I wish to do this properly."
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Posted: Wed Nov 05, 2014 4:55 pm
Ethan blinked, entirely unprepared for this second surprise in one day. He cleared his throat, trying not to show just how unexpected and uncomfortable he felt. "Ah, please, ye don' have ta kneel. Stand up, Dae'Ruil," He smiled around sharp teeth as Dae'Ruil got back to his feet and looked at him with all the nervous anxiety of a suitor expecting to hear rejection.
"Ye seem like a fine stallion. An' Ah think it's a great thing ye saw fit to do this right. But I don't feel I have the right ta give my daughter away. If she's given ye permission, then that's all that matters ta' me. I don't own her. I wasn't even there for her. An she'd probably kick both of our butts if she knew what it was ye were asking me, Dae'ruil, if I know her half as well as I think - an' that's mostly based off'o her mom and her granddam."
Ethan smiled, seeing Dae'ruil relax just a bit and chuckle with him.
"Ye should talk to her mother. It may not be as customary, but it would be the right thing to do. But...." Ethan's face lit up as he began to catch up with what was happening. A marriage - a lifemating... he couldn't be happier. "If everything is in order, please, I'd be happy to help how I can. My family has a way of doing things if Fianna would be interested in carrying on the tradition of a hoof-fasting. I'd be happy to tell ye more of it if ye like."
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Posted: Wed Nov 05, 2014 5:01 pm
Dae'Ruil didn't realize he was holding his breath until he finally let it out in relief upon hearing the alpha's words. He dipped his head again in show of thanks and gratitude. He understood that Ethan didn't feel like he had the authority to give away Fianna, but he felt better for having asken, and to know that the stallion bore no misgivings of him as a suitable suitor. Where he was from, breeding and lineage was of more importance than the strength of character, it seemed. So at least it seemed as if this stallion did not care that he was not of their ilk or even came from a land anywhere close.
He agreed to meet with Hunter Brown - Fianna's mother, but first stayed and listened for a time of Ethan and his family line's tradition of marriage or hoof-fasting. He bore some misgivings at first, if they should even wed away from his kingdom - but he could not bear to not show his dedication to Fianna through some means, to prove to her that he would never leave her, regardless of whether or not they ever did return to his home. And the more he heard of the hoof-fasting, and the simple ceremony - and how it was originally a conditional union of a year and a day - upon which after the fact the marriage could be made official or the two could separate if they proved incompatible or barren... it seemed perfect. They could still be wed in his home at a later date if they chose and it would not invalidate this ceremony, nor the one back home. It was still a show of dedication to Fianna, and they could be together with the approval of the spirits.
He smiled broadly, thanked Ethan profusely, and went to visit next with Hunter before finally returning to Fianna where she had been spending some time getting to know Rosemary.
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Posted: Wed Nov 05, 2014 5:12 pm
Several Months Pass
Time seemed to slip by as Fianna and Dae'Ruil settled into the Bythol herd and found themselves falling into an easy rhythm. No longer were they raising young stallions or traveling. Instead, they were aquainting or reaquainting themeselves with family, helping provide for the herd, and learning of the new roles and rituals of the small but growing herd.
Hunter was overjoyed to hear of Fianna's return - and engagement - and seemed to smile upon Dae'Ruil with a motherly kindness that seemed almost alien to the stallion whose own parents had been more occupied with the running of a kingdom rather than seeing to their own foals. It seemed that so much of what he knew of "peasants" was wrong. ways were not necessarily simpler, but different. Closer. Genuine.
He and Fianna were "hoof-fasted" - in a beautiful ceremony with a most glorious piece of woven knotwork that Ethan must have traded quite a bit for from the traders who occasionally passed through the lands.
He did not abandon the idea of some day returning home to the dragonfly fluttercorn kingdom, but... he found himself in no hurry. It had been many, many seasons since he left, and... had he ever truly been wanted there to begin with?
Most of all, he found himself yearning for foals of his own, and one day, perhaps an omen, a particularly bright star shone above the lands, reminding him of the legends of his homeland.
Quietly, secretly, he took to wing and headed to the highest peak he could find as was tradition, and found that he was not the only soquili who had heard the legend. There was a simple altar erected there, strewn with gifts and offerings.
With a resolute intake of air, Dae'ruil reached around and undid the clasp that secured his sword to his draperies, gently and reverently laying it down on the altar. He had never been much for conflict himself, though he had always admired soquili, like his mate, Fianna, who had the courage to fight for what they believed in.
Dae'Ruil stared up at the glimmering star, unable to deny the portentous nature of its appearance shortly after his hooffasting to Fianna and visiting her family. Hopefully this was the premonition he was hoping for. Maybe it was time to start a family of their own. Foals that were both his and Fianna's. He had been focused on taking Fianna back to his kingdom after formally asking permission from her parents, but there was just something.... right, something welcoming about the herd that her parents had been forming. It might have been so much simpler, almost crude to the young prince after the home that he was used to, but the love that was present here was so genuine that it almost took him by surprise. Almost like he had found for the first time what a home was really supposed to be. Maybe he shouldn't have been surprised. After all, the family, like Fianna herself, might be rough around the edges, but it was so very Real. Fianna's siblings might squabble, but it wasn't the almost venomous and stifling competition that Dae'Ruil's brothers had shown him.
It didn't mean that he didn't still want to return home.... some day... that he didn't want to show Fianna the dragonfly fluttercorn kingdom that he had grown up in, to introduce her to his parents, knowing and facing the certain disapproval that they would show. But... maybe.. he could rest for a time, share something genuine and real, expand their family before dealing with HIS. After all, nothing would justify to his family the realness of his relationship with the brave, brash, and feisty mare, Fianna than a family of their own.
"Star..." He began, raising his head and looking at the majestic star that outshone all the rest, "I entreat upon thee.... bless this union. Grant Fianna and I a child of our own. I love her beyond the mere borders of my heart, and bringing new life into this union will nourish and grow our love even more. She has taught me to be stronger, more confident... saved my life and saved me once more through the acceptance of my humble proposal. I never wish to tie her down - she seems to be the spirit of the wind and freedom itself some times - but I love her, and I am truly blessed to be loved in return. Let her brave spirit continue on in our foals. A foal or foals to cherish and amaze me as Fianna herself does." Dae'Ruil dropped to one knee in a formal, head-bent bow that was virtually a muscle memory to the soquili born to royalty. There was no way to know if his prayer had been heard, but he hoped beyond hope that maybe, just maybe, he had done something right and the spirits of the star would hear his petition.
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