Claymore and Dagger (closed)

[heartofcourage]

Fiona was panting, covered in a thin sheen of sweat as her blue eyes stared at the ceiling while Sam collapsed next to her. It was hard to form words as her fox kept herself present in the forefront of her mind. The only thing she could really do was turn into her side and nuzzle against Sam's cheek and shoulder, letting him hold her tightly as she slowly started to relax.

"I'm sorry for biting you." She whispered softly as she came back to herself, her fox content to curl up yet again.

 

[KieranSoares]

"Don' be," Sam murmured with a breathy chuckle as he got hold of himself as well. "Tha' was... Fantastic."

 

[heartofcourage]

"She's never done that before." Fiona said as Sam chuckled and insisted that it was fantastic. "But I think you liked her calling you eldere."

 

[KieranSoares]

"I 'ave a soft spot fer the tribal languages," Sam reasoned with a small shrug. "I think you liked what I said a lot more, though, love."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I don't even know what you said." Fiona said softly. "But I guess she knew. It was the invitation that she needed to come out."

 

[KieranSoares]

Sam turned on his side and cradled her close, pressing a kiss to her shoulder. "I'm glad she did."

 

[heartofcourage]

Fiona welcomed Sam's embrace, pressing herself against him and stealing his warmth. She was happy, content, and for the first time, she felt in tune with her fox. She was a beautiful creature, one that wanted to be loved and cherished as well. Sam seemed happy to do that for the both of them.

 

[KieranSoares]

After a long while enjoying the silence and one another, Sam knew it was time to go out and help make sure the festival could start. "Why don' you go down an' check on Kennah an' Roman? I'll get us breakfast," Sam murmured as he stretched with a sigh.

 

[heartofcourage]

Fiona nodded as she kissed Sam and finally got herself out of bed to get dressed warmly. It was bitterly cold as she made her way to the barn to check on the drakes. The barn was already open and Kennah was more alert, eating an elk which Roman had obviously caught. She grinned to see her drake, sitting content with his egg in his arms.

"How is the egg today, beastie? Still nice and warm?" Fiona asked as she hugged Roman hard around the neck.

 

[KieranSoares]

Roman simply rumbled happily, nudging Fiona toward Kennah as if to show her that his mate was getting better. The egg was still wrapped up in blankets, carefully concealed and protected as if it were the most precious thing in the world. To the drakes, it certainly was.

 

[heartofcourage]

"I see. Sam will be impressed." Fiona said, nuzzling against Roman's maw as he excitedly showed her that Kennah was getting better. "And this little beastie will get stronger too."

Fiona gently reached out to touch the top of the shell, the egg warm in the nest that had been made for it. "Stacia can watch your egg and Kennah for a while if you want to come to the festival today. Since you're such a serious beast now, I know you'll want to stay behind."

 

[KieranSoares]

Roman seemed to agree with her, sitting on his haunches and closing his eyes contentedly as he cradled the egg against his chest. When Sam stepped in, Kennah rose on slightly unsteady legs to take the egg from Roman, and promptly deposited it in Sam's arms much to Roman's surprise and slight nervousness. Sam was family to Kennah, and she wanted him to have the chance to hold the egg as well and let him know everything was alright.

Sam smiled to Kennah and stroked her mane as he held the egg in one arm, looking over the sealed crack to make sure it was still in good repair. "You'll make fer a good mother, love," he murmured to her, kissing her snout when she nuzzled his cheek. She soon took the egg back and went back to her meal, soon joined by Roman.

 

[heartofcourage]

Fiona laughed as Kennah took the egg from Roman and made certain that Sam got the chance to hold it. "You've been overruled, beastie."

As the drakes went back to their meal with their egg, Fiona took Sam's hand and squeezed it. "Did you get something for breakfast? My grandmother will feed us if we go there. Or we can get something at the festival."

 

[KieranSoares]

"It's waitin' inside," Sam told her with a nod. "Stacia wrapped it up t'go, said I ought t'get right on diggin' the elders out after las' night's snowstorm."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I'll come and help too. Uka put too much work into this to let a little snow close it all down." Following Sam outside, Fiona picked up the basket that Stacia had sent with him and they started towards the center of town.

 

[KieranSoares]

"Honestly I don' think anything could ever stop a Solstice Festival. Among th' tribal folk, everythin' else stops for it." Sam wrapped an arm around Fiona's waist as they went, and they are before warriors gathered to help and brought a wagon load of extra shovels for the volunteers. Sam and Fiona ended up helping dig out paths to the central long house, the center of spiritual proceedings and the place the elders would lead the Solstice from. The Winter Solstice was a time of celebration and raising spirits in the harsh cold, and prayer and hope for a good, plentiful spring. The animals and plants which fed the people were honored on a similar level to the ancestors, and tiny offerings were burned to be sent to the ancestors and lost loved ones, mostly carvings, food, and little baskets filled with pine needles and evergreen twigs, as pine was sacred as a plentiful building material, firewood, and it's needles for incense.

Sam was a quick worker, his stamina a clear sign of how often he'd worked in the lumber camps back in Inverness. He talked freely with Fiona, and in Erygonian to those around them. When children came to help by spreading dirt and sand on the paths to keep them from getting too slippery, Fiona saw in Sam a love of children made by having helped take care of his little sisters and cousins.

 

[heartofcourage]

Fiona liked to sit and just watch work. His strength was evident even under his thick layers. He had a smile on his face in spite of the hard labor and he took a moment to talk to the children and those around him with kind words. She loved him deeply and she was incredibly happy to know that they were together for a very long time.

She sat on the front step of the long house, working in her own little offering for the fire that would burn later that afternoon to start the festivities. She was sewing a tiny piece of cloth with a little fox, her mother's initials beneath the fox on the fine linen. She hoped that everyone was right and Tatianna would receive it and cherish it.

Hearing someone approach, she paused in her work and glanced up towards her father. He had cleaned himself up, even if he still looked rough around the edges.

"Hi." She said softly, scooting over so that he could have a seat next to her. "Do you have something to give Ma?"

 

[KieranSoares]

"Morning, little kit," he said in response, visibly more relaxed. He looked a bit tired, but calmer. And though it would take a lot of care, good food, and avoiding too much stress for his fur to ever shine again, he was well on his way. He settled beside Fiona and reached into his coat, showing her a little charm he'd made. It was a piece of very strange white stone with real silver veining through it, a hole carefully put through the center and strung on a piece of leather with beads made from other colored stones. Fiona had seen them before, a little charm, sometimes necklaces or bracelets or wall charms, called tchekomba whiylaiy. They were a mix of Lunar and Erygonian culture, combined in a little set of beads meant to protect its carrier (or their home) from harm. To be made correctly, it took five months to properly bless.

"I made this during my time in Amsterdam... I wanted to bring it to your mother's family as a sort of peace offering. Oleg asked me to send it to your mother and grandfather instead, to make peace with them. So I'm sending half the beads now. When I go back to Scotland, I'm going to bury what's left at their graves."

 

[heartofcourage]

"It's lovely." Fiona said as she looked over the beads that her father had made for both her Ma and Ephriam. "She would have like them. She always like pretty things."

Even though her Ma had spiraled into a pit of despair and self destruction, she had been a beautiful fox. Her white fur always seemed to sparkle in the light, her eyes warm and welcoming to everyone. Fiona could remember curling up against her as they rocked next to the fir, her fingers playing with that fur as Tatianna hummed and soothed her by running her fingers through her blonde hair.

"The egg has a heartbeat." Fiona said with a smile towards her father. "And Sam's drake has been getting stronger. He wanted to thank you for your help with the both of them."

 

[KieranSoares]

A small smile came to Owen's face. "It ought to hatch sometime in late winter. I hope you're ready for that. It won't take long for it to learn to walk, and then your drakes will be chasing it all over to keep it out of trouble."

 

[heartofcourage]

"The way that they're both acting, I think they're up for the challenge." Fiona said with a laugh as Owen smiled at the thought of a tiny drake giving its parents a run for their money. "And I'm sure Sam and I will be right there with them."

 

[KieranSoares]

"How long have you and Samuel been seeing each other, if you don't mind my asking?" Owen asked softly. "He seems like a good man."

 

[heartofcourage]

"A few months now. We had a bit of a break recently, but now...it looks like things are looking up." Fiona said as Owen asked her about Sam. "He's a Prince of Inverness. But none of that matters to me. He loves me and treats me well. I love him."

 

[KieranSoares]

"I'm glad to hear that. Really, I am," Owen nodded. "Love is something everyone should know at least once in their life."

 

[heartofcourage]

Fiona sat aside her project and gently took Owen's hand in her own, squeezing it and looking him in the eye. "You're my Da, no matter what happened between us. Half of your blood runs through my veins. I want you in my life and I want you to be there for all those moments that you might have missed. I don't want us to be afraid of one another."