that holiest of sins

Alaine Winters · 01-16-2011, 12:56 AM

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table © Sie
ooc: orin, where for art thou! forward-dated to the 16th, if that is okay with you?
SoSuWriMo: 529

The afternoon light stretched, crisp and clean and clear, across the wintry landscape. Although surrounded by a stifling silence, the woman who rode in the midst of the pines was humming a sweet and foreign tune, her thick lashes bejeweled by the small flakes of snow that drifted lazily from the bowers ahead. The horse below her plodded steadily onwards, lulled by the melodic sound of her music. Because of the winter chill, the figure was garbed in a splendid hooded cloak of bright crimson hue. However, the weather was not particularly spiteful, and now that the sun was up Alaine had allowed the hood to settle about her slender shoulders.

The journey had not been a particularly weary one. She had chosen the mare she rode due to her absolutely placid nature; although Alaine was not a strong rider, she and the horse had come to an accord earlier on, and the mount was willing enough to do as she asked so long as the pace was not too fast. This was not a problem for the healer woman, who found it much easier to sit astride the gentle giant when she was moving at a leisurely walk. The unlikely pair had left Cour des Miracles land earlier that day, before morning had broke its weak rays and feeble warmth across the bitter land. They had made good time since then, stopping only for brief respites so that Alaine could rest her aching joints and the horse could eat her final reservoirs of dried fruits that she had prepared for the small journey. The Apothecary was unwilling to allow her physical situation to overcome the love she had for fulfilling her duty, but being pregnant meant that it was much more difficult to move around than when she could shift into lupus form.

The land of ethereal eclipse had been mute, but beautiful, with small stalagmites of frost dripping clear crystal beads on the occasional sprawling tree-limb. She loved this season, perhaps more than any other; perhaps it was her namesake for this reason. But it was the winter's bite that had pulled her on this journey, to seek out the new neighboring pack she had heard so much about. Alaine was curious to know if they had a resident healer, for, for a long time now, she had been the only medical aid in this area of Nova Scotia. More so, she wished to know the fate of a certain pink-haired sylph, who was rumored to dwell there now.

Alaine was uncertain of exactly where the pack borders were, but by mid-afternoon she made the wise assumption that she may have breached them, and pulled the quiet mare to a halt with a gentle tug on otherwise drooping reins. The horse obediently stood as the woman gazed around, her sharp shamrock-green eyes observant and wary. It would not do to be seen as a trespasser, however non-violent this pack had thus far proven themselves to be. While her mount stood docilely, the Apothecary shifted her seating to ease some of the pains in her lower back, before loosing a wavering but musical howl to announce her arrival.

Orin Takekuro · 01-16-2011, 06:07 AM

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WC 655

Orin was sitting alone on the front stoop of her bookstore when she heard the call. The young woman had hardly left her home during the last week in the aftermath of her night spent with Shawchert. After all the books and tales she read about love and romance she never would have guessed something like this could have turned out so terribly. Of course, the fight with Sky had been the worst of it. Sky had tried to apologize since then, but Orin's stubborn nature would not see it. She knew for the sake of her pack and for the sake of her future that she should forgive the woman. Ultimately, no harm had been done except for giving Bangle a show and perhaps creating a little buzz of gossip that would be forgotten soon enough. Orin was the only one who was working to become the pack's historian and she could easily leave this little tidbit out of the history books.

Little plop... plop... sounds resonated through the winter air as Orin dropped small snowballs onto the ground. While lost in her reverie she had scooped up and handful of snow and let it sift through her fingers. In all honesty, the Takekuro woman did not fully understand why she felt like this. Sure, she had been embarrassed. Sure, the feud was stressful. But even in her stubborn days or during a sudden flare in temper she never caught herself actually thinking so pessimistically. She had been stuck in this rut all week, hardly ever bouncing out of it fully even when talking to the friends that came to comfort her. This was not like her. Or maybe this was just what life felt like after you shared your body with someone? Or just what it was like to be grown up?

She was so lost.

Sighing, Orin lifted her head and listening to the low grumble in her belly. She was hungry. She was practically starving, in fact, despite having already eaten a meal just an hour ago. It seemed to come along with her depression, this crazy urge to eat everything she could. And half the time she would suffer bouts of nausea afterward and lose a lot of the meal. It played on Orin's stubborn nature all over again, and she started to refuse to eat. Why bother if her body was just going to reject it? So she ignored the second craving for food.

Her legs dangled over the short porch and she stared at her feet as they swung back and forth. Would this ever stop?

That was when Alaine sang. Orin's ears twitched and she jerked her head up. She was not certain but that voice sounded very familiar. Could it be..? She wondered to herself, and wasted no time in shoving herself off the porch. She wanted to take off towards the call at the usual exuberant run that was so characteristic of her, but she could not summon the energy. Instead she settled on a brisk walk, hurrying out of the shopping square of Thornbury and into the woods. Once she pressed into the snow laden foliage, she sang a return call.

Though she was slower than usual, it was not long until she trodded through the trees in just the right location and spotted the brilliant red cloak that Alaine donned. A wide smile brimmed on her face, one of the few genuine smiles she could muster over the past week, and she finally found that snipped of energy she so dearly desired before. She trotted up to the mount, all sunshine and glee for her friend Alaine.

“Oh wow, Alaine, I thought it was you!” She beamed up at her friend, but from this angle and beneath the cape she could not see the woman's condition. “Welcome to Cercatori D'Arte! I've missed you! How have you been? What brings you here?”

Alaine Winters · 01-17-2011, 02:20 AM

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table © Sie
SoSuWriMo: 514

As the last remnants of her call echoed listlessly through the quiet forest, Alaine stilled herself, listening eagerly for a reply. She longed to be off the horse so as to rest her aching muscles, and sitting somewhere warm would surely do the trick. Drawing the ruby cloak tighter about her slender frame, the Apothecary suppressed a shiver.

She did not have to wait long. A second cry rose shortly thereafter, and for a moment, the healer forgot all of her worldly aches and felt a warm smile don her glowing maw. Was that- could it possibly be? Sensing her growing excitement, the mare began to shift her weight uneasily, one large dinner-plate hoof pawing at the frost crusted earth. To still the beast, Alaine forced herself to wait patiently, taking a firmer grip on the slouching reins. And as well she did, for a figure melted quickly from the cold landscape, her vibrant pink hair allowing no assumptions as to her identity. With a bark of joy, the collie woman was forced to tug hard at the small leather straps attached to the placid beast, so as to stop it from dancing around on the spot. The sudden appearance of another predator-type animal had made it momentarily uneasy, but with a few soothing coos from the rider, the mare resumed her doe-eyed docility.

"Orin! Oh, Orin!" She loosed a delighted peal of laughter at seeing her friend once more, and one the other woman was close enough, reached out one ivory hand to rest it on a likewise snowy hued shoulder. The merrily familiar tone of the book-obsessed beauty barraged her with questions, the stream of inquiries and statements broken by another bubbling laugh from the Apothecary. "My, it is so good to see you again, mo cara!". Intelligent eyes of shamrock green looked keenly to winsome gold. So much time had passed - They had so much to catch up on. But Alaine was aching again, and the small of her back complained bitterly from it's frozen position, bearing such weight as hers and the meager bodies of her unborn.

"I will answer your questions, yes, but first tell me: Is it a far walk from here, to your dwellingplace?" Lines beneath the healer's eyes would reveal how tiresome she was, "I've been riding for quite a while now, so if the distance is not great, I think I might rather walk!" Another spout of relieved laughter, and the creamy-pelted Fae released her hold on the other woman so that, with much awkwardness, she could swing one leg over the horses back to meet its companion. The motion moved aside her thick cloak, for the first time revealing the gentle maternal swell she prized so greatly.

With a sheepish grin, Alaine held out one hand, the other gripping tightly to the gentle beast's saddle. "I don't suppose you could help me down? I am a little... Disabled, at the moment," And because she was still self-conscious about how others viewed the obvious pregnancy, emerald eyes looked keenly to the pink haired maiden.

Orin Takekuro · 01-28-2011, 01:49 AM

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ooc... I had NO muse for a little while there, sorry! Thanks to coffee it is now back! Eee! Small PP on walking and such, let me know if any of it needs to be changed. Feel free to continue their walk to/entrance to the bookstore if you want, or any other distraction that may occur. <3 wc 759

“Oh, it's not too far of a walk at all,” she chittered in reply to Alaine's question. One dainty hand made a slight motion towards the the direction from which she came. “I like in a town called Thornbury and it's not much of a walk. A little snow and brush in the way but you saw how fast I got here after your call, and I didn't even run this time.” She giggled gently; anyone who knew Orin knew how much she loved to sprint almost anywhere.

“Yeah, come on down, walk with me and stretch your back,” she agreed with a hearty nod. Her eyes watched her friend closely as she began to shift in her perch, readying herself for dismount. That was when the fine cloth of the cloak shifted aside and Alaine's swollen belly poked through. Before she could stop herself Orin let out a little gasp of surprise and her eyes went wide and jerked up to Alaine's face. The shock written in her expression soon melted into a large, ecstatic grin.

“Alaine!” She squeaked, but her tone was not scolding. That slight tremor in her voice was the product of her jubilation. There was not even a brief flash of negative judgment in her eyes for her friend. She did not know Alaine had a mate... Or perhaps she still did not... but either way this was still joyous news. She laughed softly and joked, “Alaine, are you making me some little pupils?”

She chuckled as she moved a step closer to Alaine's mount, waiting for the creature to become steady and trustworthy, then she took Alaine's hand and elbow and shifted herself to be of best support while her friend dismounted. From afar this may have been a humorous sight – two equally tiny Luperci women versus a tall mare. But in the end, the job was done with little folly.

Once Alaine was steadily on her feet Orin slipped around her friend and took the horse's reins, slipping them over the animal's head so they could now function as a lead. She held the straps, ready to guide the mare so her friend could have a leisurely walk. “It's this way,” she gestured and fell in step at Alaine's side when she was ready. Part of her secretly thanked the woman's condition for setting a moderate pace, for Orin herself had little energy thanks to her own unknown condition. “I have a bookstore now! I discovered it in near perfect shape. There were a few setbacks when I first settled in and some repairs are slow going thanks to the season, but it's a charming little place and hardly any of the stock was destroyed by the years. Get this... haha!... some skunks had taken up shelter inside, I suspect that's why no one really messed with the place until I came along. Don't worry, though, the smell has finally cleared.”

Orin chattered on like this for much of their short walk, though she gave Alaine the opportunity to interject when needed. Orin herself found difficulty in talking and walking the whole span, often running out of breath in just a few quick words and having to pause in her story (but not in walking) to catch her breath. Soon the woods came to an end ad the women were upon the edge of Thornbury. They emerged right at the butt end of the shopping district, and from there they could see her bookstore.

“There it is, right over there,” she broke the short silence and pointed to the bricked building on one end of the U-shaped district. “I'm afraid we don't have a stable yet. The leaders plan to build one but, just like my shop repairs, that project has been a little stunted by the winter. Hmm...” she considered for a moment, wondering what to do with the horse. “Skye keeps her horse in her house. I... uh... don't really want a mare in my bookstore, though.” She gave Alaine a guilty look. “But we could slip her into one of the empty shops, or if you think she'll be warm enough tether her reins around one of the support posts outside my store.”

She said all this as she continued forward, halting her speech on occasion as she did to recapture her breath. She yearned to start in with questions about Alaine's puppies but knew that her friend wanted to get inside and comfortable before playing twenty-questions.

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