01-26-2010, 10:40 PM
[html]http://i950.photobucket.com/albums/ad34 ... bott0m.png); background-repeat:no-repeat; padding-bottom:240px; background-position:bottom center; background-color:#252237">
 At this point, Jantus was beginning to feel the effects of the drink. Rurik had picked up the pace now that his old flame was brought up, and Jantus--not one to be left behind--kept pace, though it meant that he'd get further along in the experience faster than he was used to. He nodded his head at the sailor's words, knowing his share about women, though he didn't suppose that share was more than usual. He'd spent a long time living with Mala and Ranya, raising them from pups and living with them in their travels, which he supposed would give him some insights into behaviors, but when it came to women, that was to say, the kind you got serious with, he wasn't in any better shape than any other male, maybe worse since he wasn't as old and experienced as some. "Well," he said, talking slow because the subject was touchy and because he was getting acquainted with Rurik's unusual brew, "Not a lot before I settled down in the Pine. I was big and fit, and some girls liked that when I was young. Looked pretty impressive at two, a little less of this spongy stuff, and the muscle showed through more." He laughed at this, remembering back to the perpetual rut that was adolescence. "But I had responsi...respons...I had a job, you know? Had to take care of my sisters when I was that age. Sister'd gone off and my good for nothing brother had run off with a girl of his own, didn't seem to be anyone else to do it." He shrugged his massive shoulders, taking another swig from the massive bottle. "It was okay, though. When we got to the Pine, there were plenty of girls lookin' my way. And some boys who liked Mala and Ranya, but I wouldn't have it until they were older. 'Sort of turned into their dad." He cracked a lazy smile at this, though it didn't extend to his eyes. There couldn't be a pure happiness about that thought. "Anyway, Pine girls are a bit weird, they're all warriors, seems like, so you've gotta be tougher than them, and most aren't flirty or anything, so it's a little weird to get used to at first. Eventually--ha! there's a lot that goes into that eventually--I found Vera, and she was just right for me. New to the group, didn't much like fighting, and by then I'd had a bit too much of it myself. She didn't give me any pretty scars, mind. Yeah...we've got four kids back home. All daughters, which she got a laugh out of, let me tell you. Biggest, manliest man in the whole damn place and I didn't get a son! Hah...I figure I've got more experience raisin' girls anyway. She's with 'em now, back home." He paused there, and his mouth turned down on one side. "Hopin' that all four of the kids are still there when I come back. M'daughter Vel was thinking about leaving when I went off. Hoping she didn't take this trip as an opening to go." It was his turn to be sad, and he took a heavy drink then and there, as Rurik had done. |