If we had the chance to do it all again

Colibri Haki · 08-22-2012, 03:06 AM

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Deuce Rhiannon, dated two weeks ahead (so September 4th?). Lol, stumbled across this: The old map of their house in DdM! Big Grin

Word Count → 369

She was running out of time. Coli knew she didn't have much longer until the litter was due, less than a fortnight, though she wasn't certain since she hadn't been counting. All she knew was how heavy she had grown, her belly so round and protruding that she could no longer see her feet when she stood. There was no point in wearing the cloak anymore; no amount of fabric could conceal her shape now, so her condition was hardly a secret. It happened so quickly.

The summer heat was cooling off now, most of her flowering plants were already going to seed to prepare for the oncoming autumn. The change of the seasons was inexorable, inescapable, though she dearly wished it could remain summer forever. Then she could garden endlessly without the threat of frost, and she would never have to face the looming end to her unwanted pregnancy.

Sighing, Coli waded into the shallows of the Grand Lake, feeling the soft mud squish beneath her toes. The water was cool, refreshing on her swollen ankles. She tried not to look at her bloated reflection, instead focusing on the sparkle of sunlight over the surface. This lake was the site of her disgrace, where she had been attacked and defiled earlier in the season. It was where she cleaned herself, washing her hands scores of times whenever the memories resurfaced. It was where she returned every morning to fill the wineskin bottle with water to carry to the garden, keeping her plants from wilting under the summer sun. Now it was merely where she came for solitude, to escape certain watchful eyes in the village. She was close to the border here, closer than she had dared to come for weeks, but still safely within Vinátta. She loved this pack, it felt like home more than any other, but she couldn't deny the rising feeling of being trapped.

Coli drew a deep breath, trying to steady her nerves. It hadn't gotten easier, and she still wasn't ready for motherhood; now she was simply resigned to the fact that she had no control over her fate anymore. She couldn't fight it, she could only hope to survive it.

Image courtesy of mackenzei-stock@deviantART! Table by Haley!

Deuce Rhiannon · 09-02-2012, 11:47 PM

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Haven't thought of that house in ages. It was based on my grandma's old cabin. Sorry on the wait but I am excited for this thread! LOL

She knew something had happened between Tal and Sky, because Tal had left on the day that Titania's disappearance had been discovered. She didn't know if any of her pack mates had thought of visiting nearby packs to look for the lost alphess, but she figured it was worth a shot. She had stopped to shift somewhere outside the border of New Dawn, and made her way to Vinátta. She paused for a moment at their border, breathing in the unusual scent. It was different from the musky scent of New dawn or the flowery scent of her son in D'arte. This was... almost woody. And salty. A smile drifted over her lips. It was alomst like Syemv in a way, and she knew if she didn;t have her roots set down deep in New Dawn, she would have found herself drifting this way.

She lifted her head, letting her voice trail out over the pack. Her voice still had the faint note of authority, and the faintest whisper of her adoptive father's Irish heritage. She lifted a hand to her mane, absently twisting a lock of the greying white blonde strands around her finger. She wasn't far from a lake that seemed to be on the border. Surely the pack wouldn't mind if she slaked her thirst, as long as she stayed out of their lands until greeted?

She knelt, cupping her hands and bringing the water to her mouth. As she did so, she caught a glimpse of her reflection. Mismatched eyes, a missing ear tip, scars running down her face. She'd taken out her earrings a while ago. She barely recognized herself anymore. She drank the cool water, then sat back on her heels, just looking at her reflection in the water.

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Colibri Haki · 09-04-2012, 03:34 AM

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<333!

Word Count → 505

Colibri was lost in thought, and might have remained there for some time if she had not been interrupted. Her ears perked forward at the sound of a nearby wolf's howl -- very close, a feminine timbre with a knell of authority and wisdom. Coli hesitated. She was not one to answer border calls or assist joiners; she barely spent time with her own packmates, and even those attempts at socialization were awkward and draining. Lately she was content to retreat back to the village and let someone younger and more eager bound out to greet visitors, as she lacked the energy or patience to try anymore. But something about this call was different, a vague familiarity that tugged at her chest, drawing out her curiosity. She licked her lips nervously before tilting back her muzzle, answering with her own hesitant howl; no one else need come to assist her, she was the closest Vináttan to the lake and she would arrive on the scene shortly.

She waded back to the shore, shuffling her feet through the grass to rid them of mud. Suddenly anxious about her appearance, Coli smoothed her fur down with her palms, combing her fingers through the long tresses of her mane as she walked along the shore. Her pace was lagging, slow steps concealing the growing anxiety she felt the closer she drew to the territory's edge. She was trying to place where she knew the voice from; the association it invoked was something gentle, some bittersweet memory from many seasons ago.

The strong scents of the oft-patrolled border made her halt, pressing her fingers against her sternum to feel the fluttering of her heartbeat. Even such a short walk left her out of breath, as she was heavily pregnant and weak. She could almost feel Saul and Lilin radiating their disapproval -- she knew they would rebuke her for coming to the borders now, in her condition, but Coli knew this voice would not hurt her. It was a calming presence, one that made her want to follow no matter how far the distance. Who...?

Blue eyes peered out along the lake shore, filtering through the sparkling of sunlight over the water. There was a lone figure, a female with soft unblemished white fur, gazing pensively at her reflection. Coli bit her lip, feeling the tugging at her chest grow more intense. There was a lingering sadness in her, one she could not quite explain. Who was that? If she could just see the wolf's face, her eyes, perhaps she would recognize her then...

Coli wrapped her arms protectively around the curve of her abdomen, before calling out to the stranger. "You've reached the b-borders of Vinátta... c-can I... help you with something?" Her ears fell back apprehensively, feeling the tension grow between them. Had she made a mistake in coming here? It could be her mind playing tricks on her, desperate for some sort of comfort in this lonely duration. Perhaps this truly was a stranger.

Image courtesy of mackenzei-stock@deviantART! Table by Haley!

Deuce Rhiannon · 09-04-2012, 08:56 PM

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ooc goes here

The voice came to her ears, and she lifted her head to look at the approaching wolf. For a moment the coloring and eyes led the mother to believe it was her own daughter, Willow, standing there, but Willow hadn't been seen in the lands in many months. She stood slowly, her startled emotions on her face. That voice, she hadn't heard that soft voice in years. Not since a shared cabin in Dahlia.

The matriarch spoke softly, a hand lifting to grasp a pendant that wasn't there and hadn't been in years, an absent gesture she didn't even know she still did. "Colibri?" Her voice trembled slightly as she stared wide eyed at the apparition in front of her. The girl, like her younger half-sibling, was the mirror image of her sire.

And then mismatched eyes fell to the heavy roundness of the girl's...no, woman's belly. Colibri was pregnant, unless this was another look alike child of the male Deuce had once cared for deeply. The matriarch approached slowly, stopping an appropriate distance away from the woman. She wanted to reach out and hug the woman. She didn't want to scare the woman, though.

Passion overruled reason, and the aging woman opened her arms to envelop the chocolate hued woman in a hug. It would be easy enough to duck if the other woman wished, Deuce herself was feeling shy about hugging her. How would Colibri react after Deuce so suddenly vanished all those years ago?

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Colibri Haki · 09-05-2012, 04:03 PM

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;_;

Word Count → 589

The white wolf turned to face her, speaking her name. Coli caught her breath with a hiss, stunned. "Deuce... is that really you?" she whispered, gazing awestruck at the ghost from her past. That platinum blonde mane was greying with age, there were more scars than she remembered, but those wise bi-colored eyes were unmistakable. A soft whimper escaped her lips as it all came flooding back -- Dahlia de Mai, the one packmate who reached out to her and accepted her into their household without hesitation. Little Willow, her brave half-sister that she puppy-sat for. Taliesin, the quiet presence she was too shy to ever open up to. All too quickly, her surrogate family left; first the children, then Deuce herself couldn't bear to be without them and slipped away without a word. Coli had remained in the empty cabin, trying to go about her daily routine without letting the loneliness consume her entirely. It got too sad, and eventually she too deserted the pack, taking only one souvenir from the house -- a battered old tea kettle, the same one she and Deuce had shared morning tea with. She didn't have it any more, but just the thought of it made her throat choke with emotion, unable to speak.

Deuce approached her slowly, hesitantly, as though she didn't want to scare her away. Coli's lips twisted into a bitter half-smile, remembering how painfully shy she had been back then. She wasn't much better now, but so much had happened since those days, wasn't she at least a little tougher? Before she knew it, she was swept into a passionate hug, an unexpected embrace that she just could not resist. Her big belly was in the way, a barrier between them, but she leaned in anyway, for once desperate for the contact she so often avoided. Coli buried her face in Deuce's white fur, breathing in her scent. It still meant comfort to her, a place of safety, even if there were so many new scents she could not recognize. She whined softly, trying not to cry as she clutched at the taller woman's back, holding her tightly.

"I can't believe it's you," she mumbled, finally finding her voice. She must look so different now herself, with new scars, her pregnant belly, her tail -- oh gods, her tail was gone, Dahlia de Mai was a lifetime ago. She pulled her face back, gazing up at Deuce as she gripped the matriarch's arms. "You, you left so suddenly, I didn't... Why did... What was I supposed to do all by myself?" she whimpered, hurt shining in her blue eyes. She felt like she was young again, the years stripped away by her raw emotion. It was surreal, Colibri Haki and Deuce Rhiannon reunited here by the lake -- surely she was dreaming the whole thing, if Deuce was alive she would have tried to come back and look for Coli. Wouldn't she...?

"I... I waited as long as I could... but war was coming, it wasn't safe... wh-when I left, H... Haku... took my tail," she said stiffly, subconsciously tightening her grip as her gaze dropped. Did she blame Deuce for that? Surely that was unfair, even if the once-shaman had promised to protect her from her father. It was just unfortunate timing, a series of misfortune that seemed to follow Coli wherever she went. She had only been shielded from it for that short while, living in the cabin with a family... Why did they all leave?

Image courtesy of mackenzei-stock@deviantART! Table by Haley!

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