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 Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2021 4:02 pm
The journal back home was certainly an adventurous one. Sol had never traveled with little ones before and trying to keep up with their individual needs was something of a challenge. He'd known that keeping up with an infant would be hard given his condition, but two? In all honesty, he hadn't been prepared for it. They never really discussed the possibility of two at once but he hadn't been in a position to turn them away. What kind of monster could?
They were stationed with a traveling caravan for the evening moving from Oba through Jauhar and into Tale. A plethora of other travelers had melded in with the group, giving a sense of safety to the young fathers but also one of caution. With Koril out on an impromptu job Sol was left with sole care of the girls. For a while they had been happily sleeping while he made sense of supplies, but then Nimia had woken up and had refused to be consoled ever since. That, in turn, had caused her sister to join in and now Sol was left wishing his husband would hurry up.
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Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2021 4:26 pm
Subira was still a morning person thanks to her childhood with Ujana. It was amazing that she hadn't inherited any of her mom's laziness but had learned to take after her earthling mother. Of course since she was traveling with a caravan most of the important jobs were taken and she'd completed her task early so she now had nothing to do so she felt lazy. Kind of. For now she stretched her arms above her head as she walked, forcing her muscles to go to their limits. The alk didn't want to stay still so she thought a walk around the caravan would be good while they waited. Of course it didn't take long before she heard a little one who didn't seem to want to be soothed. It reminded her of her time away and helping the new mothers out with their daughters. Subira couldn't help but smile. Of course she also looked around to see where the fussing was coming from. There didn't seem to be a lot of Aishan's with the caravan so she assumed it was an earthling child who was doing the crying and that's what she looked for. When she spotted the crying bab her face softened a little. "Poor thing." Of course it made her look at who was holding her to see if they needed help. She might not be a mother herself but she'd gained enough experience as an honorary aunt.
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Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2021 5:49 pm
Sol had Fiadah tucked away in her bassinet on the back of their wagon and would periodically check in on her as he bounced Nimia. The little one was only partially soothed when he rocked her from side to side, making it nearly impossible for him to get anything else done. His hair was falling out of the bun he'd pulled it up into, well within reaching distance of little fingers. She tugged, pulling the golden strands into her mouth, but if it kept her from squalling then Sol was okay.
Of course he was aware of others being around them, but when he heard a voice that he wasn't familiar with his antennae flared. "Sorry; she always gets like this when she's tired."
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Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2021 5:58 pm
Subira chuckled when she noticed Sol seemed to apologize for his child's behavior. "No need to say sorry. Kids are kids." She lightly waved a hand in front of her to brush it off. It wasn't like she was annoyed or anything. "Did you need help with anything?" One thing she'd learned while helping others is that offering to do small things for them reduced the stress a lot. "I don't mind lending a hand while you take care of your little one." Subira hadn't yet spotted the second baby tucked away in the basinet so she used the singular term. "Only thing I should mention, I'm not the best cook." Her food was usually bland or burnt, there was nothing better.
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Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2021 6:13 pm
From what he could tell the voice was a younger woman, but something about the tone caught him off guard. The voice itself was coming from somewhere near his height or a little higher. That could only mean she was an alkidike or another hybrid. How strange to find one this far from Chibale...
"Thank you, but it's alright she'll sleep soo-" Almost as soon as he stopped moving Nimia let out an earth piercing cry that had Sol eating his words. He doubled his efforts; patting her back with soothing coos and bouncing from one foot to the other. The infant was so angry that she'd pulled the blanket around her head, exposing ear fins so dark with rage that they were turning indigo.
"I'm at a loss with her. She's been fed, she isn't ill, she's been changed...It's just always a fight to put her to sleep." Sol sighed and for a second his antennae flickered toward Fiadah, who made a soft little coo in her sleep but seemed to settle. "Her sister isn't like this so I don't know if it's her personality or if there's something I'm missing."
Instead of pushing her away or letting her go on about her day...Sol found himself giving in. "I hate to ask, but would you mind making some tea? We have a kettle near the fire pit."
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Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2021 6:50 pm
Subira couldn't help the smile that formed when the baby decided to prove her dad wrong. Of course what he said after in regards to all he'd done so far sounded so similar to what she'd heard from others. A slight look of sympathy passed by. "Try burping? Gas could be hurting her belly." It had worked for a few little ones before so why not now. Then she noticed the other little one, and not just because Sol mentioned her. She'd heard the soft coo. Her eyes went toward the quiet baby and then back to their dad. The poor man. She wondered briefly where the other parent was. When it seemed like the poor man finally gave in she nodded her head at him. "Sure. Where do you keep your tea leaves?" Making tea she could do. Subira was actually really good at that. It would take a lot to burn water after all.
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Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2021 3:50 pm
Sol let a tired sigh. "That's what I thought at first, but it didn't help." She kept fussing and shoving fistfuls of his hair in her mouth. Anytime he tried to take it away from her she just fussed, but Sol really was concerned about her choking on it. When he went to remove it the latest time, Sol furrowed his brow. "Hang on..." Wriggling his finger inside of her mouth, he felt a little nubbin at the bottom of her gumline and could have kicked himself for it. "She's teething." She wasn't a newborn, after all, so why hadn't that been something he thought of? With his finger still closer to her jaw, he pushed a thread of light blue magic into her and almost instantly the child started to calm. He was able to cool the affected area, and as much as he hated it, she was now suckling on his frigid fingers instead. He would have rather washed them first, but Nimia seemed much more content now. "In a satchel near the fire. It should be...blue?" Was that what Koril said? "It has a large buckle on the front."
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Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2021 4:09 pm
Teething was never a fun time for anyone involved. Subira gave a cringe as she remembered several of the girls teething at once and the crying that the adults had to endure. "That's a fun time." She joked. However, she quickly nodded her head when she was told where the tea could be found. The alkidike didn't waste too much time in getting the water in the kettle and setting it over the heat to boil. She kept an eye on it as it warmed up. Subira liked to take the water off just before the water really started to roll with bubbles, it made it easier to handle for those too impatient to wait for it to cool down. One too many sisters had burned their tongue by being in a hurry. "Do you like honey in yours?" Did the man have honey? Did he like another form of sweetener?
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Posted: Fri Sep 24, 2021 9:28 am
Occasionally Nimia would 'bite' down a little harder, pressing her sharp baby tooth into his flesh. Sol winced, doing his best to just deal with it because he was not going to do anything that might make her upset again. With any luck they would be able to find something in the market that could be a good substitute for his fingers and spirits help them if Fiadah slipped into the mix. "Lemon, actually." Now that his current problem was solved, the hybrid maneuvered his way carefully toward the woman. He could sense her aura easily enough, but since the plethora of camping supplies didn't exactly produce an aura he had to be careful not to trip. Sol knocked into a crate with a murmured curse before settling on a stone close to the fire. "There should be a chest close by with our provisions in it. Feel free to put whatever you want into the tea and have a snack as well."
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Posted: Tue Oct 05, 2021 2:56 pm
Lemon. Well she wasn't a fan but she'd known a few others who were so it wasn't an odd request. Subira nodded her head, not realizing that Sol couldn't see it. She went back to getting the tea ready when she heard the crate as Sol knocked into it. She glanced back at him and then tilted her head slightly as she continued to observe him. Her eyes narrowed a bit in confusion before it clicked in her mind that the man couldn't see very well, if at all. She straightened up at that and a soft smile spread across her lips. "Apologies, if I'd known you couldn't see very well I'd have helped you avoid the crate." Subira took a minute longer to get into the chest near his provisions so that she could get what she needed. She made a lot more noise than needed to ensure that Sol knew where she was at all times. Finally she came up to his side with a cup of lemon tea for him. "Here. I have your tea." Subira thought about trying to guide his hand to the cup but didn't want to overstep so she waited for him to hold his own hand out for her to put the cup in.
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Posted: Tue Oct 05, 2021 2:58 pm
"It's not generally something I like to advertise." Now that he was truly settled with his daughter laid up against his shoulder the healer could get a better grasp of his surroundings. He was still able to pick up her aura which helped and the smaller ones in the distance let him know that the others of the caravan were still around. Somewhere among their group was his husband and while initially he'd hoped Koril would hurry now he was slightly happy to have fresh company. He loved the man dearly, but sometimes one just needed to talk to someone new from time to time. "Thank you." He held out his hand, moving it toward her own with practiced ease. It wasn't a flawless execution, but once he was able to at least find her magical signature he could guess where the cup handle was and take it from there. "I've been without my sight for sometime now, but it doesn't matter how many years you have to get used to it you still bump into things."
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Posted: Tue Oct 05, 2021 3:34 pm
"Understandable."As he reached for the cup she made sure to compensate his movements with her own so that his attempt to grab the cup became flawless. Subira was used to dealing with the elderly and that usually meant failing eyesight. She smiled once she was sure Sol had his cup. "Ah, well, my name is Subira and I'm an alkidike." She could see that Sol had Alk blood in him. If the eyes didn't give it away then the antennae certainly did. Of course seeing him only made her miss her siblings a bit more. Hopefully they'd be home when she got there so that she could see them. "I am sure when your children are older they will help you navigate things more easily. I used to love being my mother's little helper, it made me feel important." Her gaze drops to the little one Sol was holding and her smile grew wider.
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Posted: Wed Oct 06, 2021 3:59 pm
"So my suspicions were correct." He smiled a little and took a drink from his cup. "You speak higher than earthlings do, and your aura has a different light to it. I knew you must have either been full blooded alkidike or a hybrid." It wouldn't have been polite to ask, but he had been curious. Still, it left him wondering other things now; such as why an alkidike would be wandering on her own this far from Chibale. Had she gone to...where was it, now? Chiume? With the Vandrea? "With any luck they will. It may sound silly, but I'm worried that they'll resent me for it. I try not to worry my husband over it as much these days but things have a way of creeping in."
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Posted: Thu Oct 07, 2021 4:41 pm
She got her own cup of tea, complete with something sweet, and settled nearby to enjoy the company for a bit. "Perceptive of you. I'm no hybrid though. My younger siblings are but last time I saw them they weren't tall." Subira chuckled a bit at that. She did wonder how tall her little brother and sister had gotten. Would they gain the height or would they stay short like their earthling mom? "I don't think they'll resent you. If anything they might become more aware and learn how to be observant of others with similar difficulties." A smile followed her words but she didn't worry about him catching it, she was sure it was heard in her tone. "And I'm sure your husband secretly loves when you let him worry over you." Most couples did. Not that Subira had any actual experience with that.
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Posted: Sat Oct 09, 2021 1:47 pm
"You say that like I could stop him if I tried." Sol smirked and took another drink. This time he got a larger sip of lemon which caused his lips to pucker. For a moment he simply let it simmer then once it passed he lowered his cup to sit next to him. "Do your siblings live close by?" If they were then perhaps she was just visiting from Chibale? It would explain why she was out this way. For a moment Nimia made a few noises as if she meant to wake up once more, but once she'd successfully rooted around on his collar bone the little one settled once more.
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