Lessons and Plans
Not quite two weeks later, their first paychecks came in. Plural. One for Sarahi, and one for Oro, in equal amounts, causing the pair's chins to drop. "Holy...! I thought we'd be splitting the bounty per head! Isn't that what the contract said?" Sarahi asked in astonishment, looking at the equally wide-eyed Oro.
"Apparently not...or we mis-interpreted the wording, one," the Rabbit blinked, flipping the check from front to back as if expecting some kind of written note on one side, "Fuck, I even admitted she was generous, but...now I feel like I owe that woman an apology."
The Sha'khari blinked at Oro...then laughed. "Well that's the best surprise we've had in a long time," she sighed with a smile, "I dare say this will keep the bills at bay for a while, and we could even burn a little on some luxuries without too much guilt."
Oro quirked a dubious brow at her. "Such as...?"
"Your own phone," Sarahi gave him a smug grin. Despite all their recent influx of resources, he still had not made what seemed to the rest of society to be a pretty basic purchase...and still seemed greatly disinclined to make it even now. None of his family would call him miserly, but when it came to making purchases for himself, the Rabbit was stringently minimalist. And, knowing he would not entertain the idea for long, Sarahi didn't linger on it. "And maybe take up that Mr. Longclaw's offer. Some formal training couldn't hurt, even if we're already pretty good, and that guy really seemed to know what he was doing. Honestly, if I didn't know better, I'd think he'd done our job before."
"Pass," Oro scoffed, waving off the mere suggestion as he headed for the kitchen, "I wouldn't mind sparring the guy sometime, maybe, but I've got no use for dance routines and colored belts. MA's are all about fighting other people, and people's not what we're up against."
Sarahi frowned. "He adapted it pretty well to fighting that deer," she noted, "Better than we were, even."
The Rabbit rolled his eyes. "Yeah, and he told us we could do the same...after about twenty fucking years. Look, I respect the guy's ability — kind of envious of that spirit-punch, or whatever he called it, even — but if it really takes that long, I'm already decades ahead of the game. Besides, I'm kind of doubtful the guy's really that old, just by the look of him."
"...I'd go with you," Kylan remarked from the table in the breakfast nook, flipping over a page in his book of runes, "It's bound to be easier than this stuff. It may say ‘primer', but there are terms in here that just don't seem to exist in our world, so I have no idea what about half these pages are talking about. Having an actual teacher would be a huge help," he sighed, closing the book, "Maybe I can be more useful on the next run, then."
Oro had laid his paycheck down in front of the smaller Feline on his way to the fridge, trusting Kylan to make the deposit and allocate it to their budget as needed. Sarahi was just about to add hers as well when that sentence left his lips, freezing her in her tracks. "Kylan...why would you need to? We're not planning to make another run," she glanced at Oro, like she suspected he might be scheming something without telling her, "...Are we?"
But it was Kylan who gave her a puzzled look, and explained, "We didn't get what we went in for in the first place, did we? I kind of thought we would be making another attempt, eventually. You know...after taking a little time to recover, and maybe improve our skills. I thought that was at least part of why you two took this job: it gives you a convenient excuse to practice using your weapons. That's why I've been...trying...to decipher some of this book every day," he held up his runic primer, "And Diya's been training Sonny...or more like he's been training her. That wolf is smart, and obviously been in more fights than we have."
Sarahi blinked in clear surprise. "That's what she's been doing? I thought she was just trying to teach it tricks."
Kylan laughed. "You didn't notice? I mean, yeah, I guess it does look like pretty basic stuff at a glance, but she's been working out how to point him at specific targets or bring her things she names. She's even had him track each of us down a couple of times, to be sure he knows our names and can match them to a scent. FYI: he can."
Sarahi...felt less impressed than concerned. "Crap," she sighed at last, "I guess we are doing this again, aren't we?"
"Not for a while," Oro grunted, sitting down at the table with the sandwich he'd made already half-eaten, "There's no pressure to go in right now. Tuli's fine. Our finances are fine. We have time to prep. If you want those lessons, go get them. I'm just going to keep hunting and fighting," he frowned, glancing over at Kylan and the book in his hands. "...Good luck with that stuff," he grunted, stuffing the rest of his sandwich into his mouth.
The following Wednesday, Sarahi and Kylan showed up at the Longclaw Dojo...a little late. It was kind of tight scheduling for the little Feline to get home from college, pick up the Sha'khari, and get them both back down to the dojo in time. They hoped the instructor would be understanding.
They should not have looked him in the eye. Standing at the front of the class with a baton in each hand, Master Longclaw looked furious at the sound of the little bell above the door ringing, and his glare alone nearly drove the pair back out to the sidewalk. When they remained frozen in place, he nodded his head to their left, indicating the door to the small office space attached to the indoor training room. His instructions to the twenty or so students lined up in front of him resumed the instant they turned in that direction.
"Crap," Sarahi whispered as they got out of the instruction area, glancing back through the door's little window, "He looks pissed! I guess punctuality is a sticking point for him."
"Oh, it is," smiled the bright-eyed Snow-Leopard behind the desk, "But don't let it worry you. He's rarely as angry as he looks." Resting her chin on her knit fingers, she smiled warmly at the pair. "So you decided to sign up? Is that the spear?"
Sarahi and Kylan blinked together. "Uh...yes," Sarahi answered with a quirked brow, "You know why I'm here?"
Extending her hand across the desk, the Snow-Leopard's smile never faltered. "Nai Longclaw. Master Longclaw is my husband, so of course I heard all about his little adventure on the mountain last weekend. And don't take it the wrong way, dear, but you're easy to describe."
"Sarahi Ironheart," the Sha'khari introduced herself, accepting the hand briefly, "No offense taken."
"Oh, but I'm being rude," Nai turned to Kylan, offering her hand to him as well, "Are you with her, or here on your own?"
"Definitely with her," Kylan chuckled, accepting the hand Sarahi had already shaken, "Kylan Runepaw."
"A pleasure to meet you both," she answered sincerely, glancing over their shoulders a the door, "Your Rabbit friend isn't coming, too?"
Sarahi winced slightly. "He has trouble with...formal settings."
"I see," the other female remarked nonchalantly, as if she heard that excuse a lot. Pulling two small stacks of papers out from under the desk, she briefly went over the sign-up process, requirments, and fees, and got out a ready-made uniform for Kylan. After he trotted off to the changing room, she looked Sarahi over carefully. "You won't be surprised to hear I don't have anything fit for you, I imagine."
"Not at all," Sarahi chuckled, rolling her eyes, "I can make do with some regular pants, if you have any big enough...though I hate the way it's going to sit on me."
Nai just nodded, observing the obviously custom-made jeans wrapped around all four of her legs. "Those will do for today, and this weekend too, if you come back. May I?" she asked, giving her cell phone a little wave. Sarahi nodded, and the Snow-Leopard stepped around to snap a couple of photos for reference of how her jeans were constructed. "Excuse my hands, please," she warned, then gently laid her palms on the Sha'khari's lower back, walking them down heel-to-fingertip from her leonine shoulders to the base of her tail. "It's been a while since I had to do some serious sewing, but I'll have something suitable for you by this time next week. Will that be okay?"
"Absolutely!" Sarahi smiled gratefully, "Thank you for the trouble!"
"No trouble at all," Nai smiled back, then nodded to the door behind her, "I think he's ready for you."
Turning around, Sarahi saw Master Longclaw approaching through the little window in the door. The rest of the class had been turned over to one of his subordinate instructors, and circled around to observe close-combat techniques in the center of the room. Pushing the door open, the Tiger put just the head and shoulders of his towering frame through the space, having to stoop slightly to avoid striking the top of the frame. "Is she ready?"
His presence made her feel small. The tone of his voice, the look in his eyes...all of it screamed that he was a predator with his teeth already around her throat. Bizarrely, he was even more intimidating in his own dojo than he had been on the side of the mountain a few days ago. No, Sarahi was not ready, but managed to stop herself from saying it out loud.
"Ready as she'll be for today," his wife smiled, handing Sarahi a uniform shirt to pull on over the tee-shirt she'd worn.
"Good," the Tiger grunted, finally looking directly at Sarahi...and then the spear she was clutching to her chest like a protective charm. "Leave that in here," he commanded, then stepped back from the door.
"Yes, sir," she replied instinctively. Reluctantly leaning her magical weapon in the corner behind the door, Sarahi followed him meekly. They met Kylan returning from the changing rooms, and Master Longclaw motioned for him to fall in beside Sarahi...so he did, silently and a little frightened by the Tiger's intensity.
They passed down the side of the training room and through a door in the back into a wide, sand-covered yard rimmed with small bushes, racks holding weapons (real ones, surprisingly), and a handful of imitation lanterns. "Wow," Kylan whispered, "Big lot they've got here."
"The Red-Fang style is all-encompassing," Master Longclaw explained, "We teach fitness and meditation, empty-hand combat, and armed melee combat. The more advanced classes learn to use and defend against projectiles and firearms. We need a lot of space," he growled, taking up a spear from one of the racks and holding it out to Sarahi.
She accepted it a little reluctantly. It was heavier than she was used to, and a tad longer. Her hands, now so used to the smooth, bone-like texture of her usual weapon, seemed keenly aware of the grain of the wood in her fingertips. Master Longclaw stationed himself on top of a squat block of stone at the edge of the sand, and gestured for her to move out to the center of the area. "This is an evaluation," he announced, crossing his broad arms over his even broader chest, "Show me what you know about handling your weapon, so I can determine where to begin your training."
"Uh...how about from square one?" Sarahi suggested with a shrug, "I haven't had any kind of formal training with a weapon. I don't know patterns or anything."
The Tiger's eyes narrowed on her, and Sarahi took an insinctive step back. "I held that weapon for a moment," he reminded her, "I felt it speaking to my body. I don't doubt you can handle it well enough when it is guiding you directly, and I do not doubt that at least some of that skill has been engrained in your muscles themselves. The more you can manage on your own, the freer your weapon will be to do what your body cannot. That is why you are here," he growled, "Now, show me what you will do when I attack you from the left."
Taking a deep breath, Sarahi spaced her hands out along the length of wood in her grip. Stabilizing her stance, she tried to imagine this Tiger...this terrifying Tiger...kicking at her left side, and moved to interpose the spear between her ribs and the strike. It didn't feel right, at first. She took a moment to adjust herself, and her new Master looked on silently, making no remark until she looked back to him again. "Now from the right," he instructed, keeping whatever opinion he had of her form to himself. He walked her through several moves that way, telling her to turn, to block, to swing, to thrust, and to guard herself. "Now show me what you will do when I strike at you from above."
He surprised her then, leaping off the stone pedestal and sailing through the air, arm raised in preparation to do exactly what he'd just warned her he would do. Sarahi almost didn't move in time. She felt the shock of the blow run down her arms, shake her shoulders, and ripple down both of her backs, kicking up sand beneath her paws as the pressure discharged through them. "Good," Master Longclaw congratulated her sincerely with his meaty forearm still braced on the wood of her spear, holding him at bay mere inches from her head, "You cover yourself well. Your strikes are firm and your stances are solid, but you've been relying on your weapon to make the transitions between them. We will have to improve your footwork. That said, you've had a good master," he chuckled, breaking that intimidating aura of his for a brief moment, "I guess a weapon ought to know how it should be handled, but you've also learned your fundamentals well. You should be proud of that. I'll have a plan put together for you in time for the next lesson," he promised, finally standing up fully and giving Sarahi a firm pat on the back. The Sha'khari sighed in relief as the pressure, both physical and mental, was released.
"Now, young man," the Tiger turned his dour attention on Kylan next.
But before he could give even one instruction, the little Feline raised his hands as if in surrender. "Unless chopping vegetables counts for something, I've barely even held a weapon! Literal ground-zero here."
Master Longclaw looked him over carefully once, and seemed to accept that assessment based on his figure alone. "We emphasize knives and batons here, because they are nearly ubiquitous in every culture, and suitable for any stature. You'll start there, until you develop an interest in something else." Resuming his stance atop the stone, the Tiger looked down at them both. "That will suffice for today. Questions."
Kylan raised his hand first, eying both the spear in Sarahi's hands and the other weapons on the racks around them. "Do you always train with the real thing? Not gonna lie...that makes me kind of nervous."
"Yes," the Tiger declared firmly, "I find it is good for overcoming the very fear you suffer while maintaining a healthy respect for the blade. And it makes you familiar with the weight and balance of a real weapon. When sparring, we use bound or blunted blades, but you will develop a degree of skill before you will be allowed into that ring, so don't worry about it."
Sarahi raised her hand. "I've actually taken some MA classes as a kid...and this isn't meant as a criticism...but my past instructors kind of had trouble figuring out what to do with all this," she gestured to her back half, "The old forms get weird with extra feet involved. Is that going to be a problem?"
The Tiger snorted as if she'd insulted him, but his tone seemed sympathetic to the challenge her instructors had faced. "No moreso than training a Snake, who has no feet, or one long foot, depending on how you approach them. You are correct: the standard forms I would teach other students will not suffice for you. We will have to adapt them. If that caused your former instructors problems, that speaks to the intructor, not the Way. As it stands, I will say again that you've had a skilled master up to this point, and I can already see what it was trying to instill in you in that regard. We will hone those movements until they are as natural as walking...which you already manage quite well on four feet, so have no fear." Pointing to the mundane spear in her hand, he added, "On that note, leave your weapon at home from now on. You will train with regular weapons, so I can be sure that your movements are strictly your own. The skill of a master can compensate for a poor weapon. A weapon of power can compensate for an unskilled bearer. You have the latter. Our goal is to develop the former. When a weapon of power is brought to bear by the skill of a master, they will accomplish feats to make the gods tremble."
Kylan gave a low whistle. "I'd kind of like to see that," he admitted, glancing at Sarahi as if hoping to catch a glimpse of her future self.
But the Sha'khari was still squarely focused on their instructor. "Me too," she agreed, "Any chance we could get a demo?"
Master Longclaw couldn't quite manage to supress a smirk. "Flattery earns no rewards in this dojo, young lady, though I believe your compliment sincere. No. I'm also curious to see what that weapon is capable of, beyond the one power I saw that day. But I have held it: it allowed that, but did not approve. That weapon is aware, and has chosen you as its bearer," he declared, pointing emphatically at Sarahi, before adding more gently, "No warrior could ask for a more faithful weapon, and it will abide no other."
Maybe flattery earned no rewards with him, but Sarahi's cheeks burned just a little.
"Last one from me," Kylan pipped up again, pointing vaguely toward the door they'd come out through, "You have, like, a literal gym next to the changing rooms. Is that part of the dojo? Can we use it outside of class?"
The Tiger nodded. "As I've said, this style is all-encompassing, and I have tried to make our dojo the same. Part of training will include physical and mental conditioning. Your membership fees are exactly that: membership. How much or little you participate is your own decision. During business hours, you may attend any class you qualify for, use the facilities for meditation, body-building, or personal exercise. Only do not get in the way of my instruction," he warned...probably needlessly, "I would like to add a kitchen and dining space eventually, but that will require one of my neighbors to shutter their business, so I don't hope for it any time soon."
Kylan blinked. "Wow...is this a school or a community center?"
Once again, the Tiger couldn't seem to supress a smirk. "Is the Masked-Fox Lodge a house or a hotel? I admire that the answer is not quick and simple. It shows a strong bond between the individual and the community. I wish to foster more of that sort of entanglement."
"...Huh," Sarahi tilted her head as that thought settled in, "I guess that's true. Our town's kind of...comfortably odd, isn't it?"
Their Master smiled broadly and openly now, momentarily banishing his intimidating air. "As one who has seen much of the world, I would call it wonderfully so. Now," he snapped to attention, reclaiming that fierce aura as quickly as a hat he'd just politely tipped. Sarahi and Kylan followed suit, assuming the upright and attentive stance he demonstrated, and bowed low in response to his bow. "Dismissed," he declared with finality...
So began the new routines of the next stage of their family's life. Since they had liberty to choose when they did and did not work, Sarahi began going into town as soon as the dojo opened on Wednesdays and staying until after her and Kylan's shared class. This let the little Feline come directly to the dojo from his college classes, with time to spare, and Sarahi and Oro patrolled the mountain on Saturdays, when there tended to be more visitors to the park (and thus greater chances of an encounter, by their guess) than on weekdays.
In between college, training, and preparing to apply for his realtor's license, Kylan continued to experiment with the runes provided in the book they'd retrieved from The Gauntlet, learning the limits of what he could coax out of the simplistic, broad-scoping characters. Diya's work with Sonny became more complicated, including figuring out how she could ride his back at speed and during mock-combat and sparring with Oro.
Of course, the Rabbit continued to spar with Sarahi regularly as well, especially the day after any class she had at the dojo. The Sha'khari suspected he was cheating just a bit, attempting to learn through her whatever she was learning from Master Longclaw. She was careful not to try offering actual instruction, but had no qualms with trying out any new technique she picked up on her sturdy partner.
She would never forget the look on his face the first time he snuck past one of her thrusts, and she not only managed to intercept his bat with the shaft but worked the head behind his legs and threw him on the ground. Sarahi only mildly regretted the giggle and swell of pride she felt as he blinked up at her, stunned...and that only because he gave her that look he had which promised he was going to even the score in the next few minutes. Sure enough, the next time she attempted that trip, Oro pulled some trick of footwork that trapped her spear between his shin and thigh and let him reverse the push against her shoulder. He couldn't topple her, thanks to her extra set of legs, but he did manage to twist her weapon enough to wrench it out of her hands and kick it across the yard. Levelling Gorgorond at her chest was essentially a victory declaration at that point.
Sarahi sat down for a breather, massaging her wrists after that last exchange. "What I wouldn't give to know where you learned your footwork," she groaned half in envy and half in frustration, "Like, ninety percent of my training is focused on my feet right now, but you seem to make it up on the fly."
"For what it's worth, it shows," Oro shrugged, gesturing vaguely toward her back half, "I can't get around you like I used to. You turn too fast now," he grunted, "I learned it when I learned that quick-step you hate so much. Do you have any idea how many times I tripped and almost killed myself figuring that out? I became very aware of my feet and my balance doing that."
"Well, now that you mention it," she quirked a brow at this unexpected revelation, "You've never explained how you learned that. I kind of thought it was some sort of natural talent. You have amazing physical coordination, and I'm pretty sure I've pointed that out before."
Oro rocked his head thoughtfully. "I guess," he shrugged again, tossing Gorgorond aside for a break of his own. "It was a little after Mom started bringing men home, or taking me around with her on weekends. When she still had half a lick of sense. She warned me one day that, if ‘something happened' and ‘she couldn't move', I should run for the door and get outside as fast as I could. I took that seriously. Very," he grunted.
Sarahi's ears perked. It was rare for him to say anything about his parents aside from a brief curse. "So...you practiced running?"
"Fuck yeah," the Rabbit growled, crossing his arms over his chest. "She usually left me in the living room or kitchen while she and her hook-up went off to another room. Fuck if I know whether it was sex or drugs that she got more of, but I spent that entire time... mostly terrified," he admitted through gritted teeth, as if hating the weakness of his past self. "I took to distracting myself by finding the closest spot I dared to whichever door they were behind, plotting a route from there to the front door, and running it as fast as I could. All-out sprint. I kept making myself go faster each time if I could. I scared her and whoever she was shacking up with more than once, but eventually she stopped caring what I was doing out there, so I got lots of practice."
Also typical for his talks about his parents...what he had to say made Sarahi cringe just a bit, and regret bringing it up. Though this time had been entirely unintentional. "Wow. You might have missed your calling...well, second calling...by not trying out for track in school. If you could get that fast just by practicing, you could have been a legend on the field."
"Fuck that," Oro spat in typical fashion, "I learned my focus through fear. Ignore everything except the path. Death is stepping on your heels. ‘Survival' means ‘the other side of that door'. Get there. Just get there," he growled, reciting the mantra of his thoughts from those days. Oro pointed to his forehead. "I broke something in here, narrowing my focus that much. It's not something you do for a trophy. Anyway," he sighed, crossing his arms again, "Pretty sure she regretted that warning. I ended up in foster-care and she and her hook-up in jail because I broke down a door with enough momentum to roll me off the porch and onto the sidewalk. I scared the piss out of a passing driver who thought I was going to roll right under her tires, and she got so freaked out that I was outside alone she called the police. Mom was still on cloud nine when they arrived...and you can guess the rest from there."
Another wince from Sarahi. "I'm sorr—"
"Shut the fuck up," he grunted, interrupting her sympathetic apology. Taking a deep breath and a firm exhale, he made one of his own: "Sorry for being rude. But don't apologize when I start talking about my shit parents. Especially when you didn't ask about them," his ear twitched in annoyance...probably from embarrassment, "It takes the pressure off, a little, to cuss out their memory from time to time, since I can't do it to their faces. I never trusted the fucking therapists. Just trying to get me to open up so they can vomit platitudes I've already heard or make judgements like they know what the fuck goes on in my head. Fuck ‘em. But I'm starting to think they were right about needing to open up to someone. I feel better afterward."
"Well...I'm glad for that," Sarahi answered hesitantly, "Though I feel a little worse afterward. You seem to want some encouragement, but I don't know what to say...and coming from the family-life I had, I can't even relate enough to know how legit anything I might say would sound to you."
Oro shook his head slowly. "You don't have to. That's what makes it good. Your sympathy," he pointed at her with one finger, and then at the house, "And hers are genuine. You can be genuine because of the families you come from. That's enough. Every day you two spend with me helps erase those years. Hell," he rolled his eyes, offering her a smug grin, "I might even be a decent person someday, if you can keep it up."
Sarahi got to her feet with a smile, and pulled him into a hug. "We'll keep it up as long as we have to," she promised, and Oro surprised her by returning the hug...briefly.
"Okay, break's over," the Rabbit muttered then, taking a step back from her, "Are you learning anything you can use when that thing's out of reach?" he jerked his thumb in the direction of her spear, still sitting on the ground some feet away. "The shot's fucking devestating, but if there's still an enemy around afterward you're the one that's fucked," Oro noted, immitating backhanding her cheek.
Sarahi smirked, rising up on her back legs to rest one paw on his shoulder and immitate smacking his cheek with the other. "Don't be so sure about that," she reminded him before dropping back to all fours, "But yes, since I'm arriving so early on Wednesdays I'm taking part in one of the beginners' classes. Master Longclaw is...interesting," she mused, "Intense. Terrifying, actually. Forgotten gods help you if you don't follow his instructions. But if you want to know why you should take a certain step, or what that position is supposed to accomplish, he'll give you all the explanation you wanted and then some. And if you can't follow some instructions," she gestured to her back half, "He thinks very hard about what you can do to achieve the same effect. The amount of time he had to dedicate to me in the first few classes was kind of embarrassing...but now I can basically move along with the rest of the class, as long as I don't screw up the stances we've gone over. It's nice." She spread her paws and demonstrated a few of her new transitions. "That's probably what you've been noticing in our sparring lately."
Oro nodded. "That's good, but do we need to get you some kind of backup? Not pointing fingers, but you do lose this thing a lot. It's only bit us in the tail once so far, but the law of averages is definitely in favor of it happening again, maybe at a worse time."
"Yeah," Sarahi nodded with a sigh, "I've definitely got to be careful about my aim. And not just to avoid being caught empty-handed: if I miss, something is going to blow up. I basically have to think of it as a gun that I can also swing around." Trotting over to retrieve the spear, she admitted, "I'd almost rather be able to call it than launch it, like you do Gorgorond." She paused as she turned back to Oro, though, gripping the spear in both hands and gritting her teeth like she'd been attacked with a sudden headache. "...What are you doing?" she asked in a whisper, directed at the spear rather than the Rabbit. Oro quirked a brow, and called Gorgorond back to his hand, bracing for the heavenly weapon to make another attempt to destroy his demonic one. But instead of the lancing attack, Sarahi drew back and threw the weapon over his head like a mundane spear. It landed firmly in the dirt, standing up like a flag, and Sarahi took a couple of deep breaths as she regained complete, independent control of her body.
Oro quirked a brow again, looking from the spear to Sarahi. "The fuck was that about?"
She waved for him to move out from between her and the weapon. "It said...I can," she blinked, extending her hand toward the upright shaft. "Heaven's Tongue...a barb ever-ready...retort!" she intoned in a fashion similar to when she launched the "fist". In response, the spear jerked itself free of the ground, flipped itself into alignment with her outstretched hand, and shot back into her grip.
Sarahi stared at it like she couldn't quite believe what she was holding. Oro thumped Gorgorond on his shoulder. "Congrats on the level-up," he grunted, calling her back out of her shock, "Guess that solves that problem tidily."
"...Yeah," the Sha'khari answered absently, still wrapping her head around the idea that her weapon was hiding some of its powers...or could develop more with practice. Either implication was frightening to her. The spear had seemed powerful from the moment she picked it up, but now she was genuinely beginning to wonder what its limits might be...and whether or not Oro would survive the eventual day when it made another earnest effort to destroy Gorgorond...
"—so fast their arrows couldn't catch up," Tuli was reciting softly in her room, as though telling a story to children at bedtime. She was interrupted by an equally soft knock on her door, but quickly answered, "Come in?"
Her daughter pushed the door open a crack and peeked in. "You alright, Mom? I thought you were talking to someone."
Tuli gave her an embarrassed smile, but nodded. "Just myself, dear. I'm thinking of writing a little book about our family's runs through that Gauntlet thing, so I was trying to make sure I remember the highlights."
"Oooh, that's a good idea," Nayeli nodded, stepping fully into the room and sitting on the edge of the bed, "So...feeling okay?"
Her mother quirked a suspicious brow now. "Yes, but what's caused you to be concerned?"
"You stopped having your coffee," the younger Lioness tilted her head with a soft smile, "And only nibble at breakfast most mornings. And maybe started putting on weight...?"
Tuli put a hand over her eyes briefly, then smiled back at her daughter. "Caught me, huh?"
"Not exactly. I thought I might be over-reacting after...what happened last time. But I guess I'm right?" she asked gently, looking down now at Tuli's belly, which had begun looking just a shade fuller in the last few days than she remembered it being the week before.
Her mother nodded. "Yes. I'm pregnant again. At least it isn't a surprise this time, since I knew to be on the lookout after Oro relieved the curse...but I'm a little nervous to tell him while I can still hide it," she confessed, "I'm sure he'll feel responsible...and possibly pressured to go back into that awful place."
Nayeli nodded her understanding with a sympathetic smile. "Probably. But circumstances are a bit different this time. We've got money to spare, and a better idea of what to expect...though I hope it turns out differently this time," she added quietly.
Tuli quirked her brow again, and reached out to run her fingers through her daughter's scarlet hair. "My turn: are you alright, dear? You seem very worried."
The younger Lioness nodded. "I am. I know they intend to go in again, whether they know you're pregnant or not. The twins have been working especially hard to be better prepared this time, and Oro and Sarahi are getting scary-good with their weapons. But I can't shake this feeling that this time...they might not come back out. And I don't know what I can do to help. Gods forgotten, I don't even want them to go in there...but if they have to, I want to do something for them..."
She was practically in tears. It had been years since Tuli had seen her daughter so upset. Putting her arms around the younger Lioness, Tuli pulled her against herself and leaned back against the headboard, accepting the weight of her body if not the weight on her mind. "I know how you feel, dear. And I wish I had some pithy wisdom to give you this time...but I don't have the foggiest idea, either. For now, I'm afraid all we can do is keep them well rested, well fed, and well loved."
Nayeli nodded her agreement, but added in a muffled voice as she hugged her mother tight, "I'm scared, Mom."
"I know, dear," Tuli rubbed her back reassuringly, "Me too."
Time passed quickly in the comfort of purposeful routine. Tuli couldn't hide the swell of her belly for very long, especially from the watchful Oro.
"I wondered if that was it," he grunted when she made the announcement over breakfast one morning, "You've been drinking milk instead of coffee for a while, and you've been cautious about how you sit down and stand up."
"So you did notice," she smiled, "You should have said something. Nayeli figured it out almost a month ago."
Oro snorted, stuffing his mouth with home-made pancakes, "'S rud fah-ah mn ta athk ab—"
Nayeli put her hand over his mouth without so much as looking at him. "Speaking of rude things..."
The Rabbit rolled his eyes, swallowed, and repeated, "It's rude for a man to ask about a woman's figure, isn't it?" he sneered.
"Since when did that stop you?" Diya snickered.
Oro answered with another eye roll, crunching through his portion of bacon. "Things'll be different this time," he promised in a calmer tone, "No way in Hell are we leaving you two alone again. And we're nothing like short on cash. I'll try to get that doctor back," he sighed, rubbing his face, "Maybe he won't be so freaked out that things are...unusual...if we tell him it doesn't freak us out, and we don't blame him for last time. At least he'll know what to expect."
Tuli and Nayeli both winced a little at the thought. They agreed some sort of medical professional should be involved, for the same reasons Tuli had wanted one the first time, and that a standard hospital would raise too many questions. But the thought of putting anyone else through that bizarre process...or back through it...made them almost as uncomfortable. But they agreed his reasoning was as sound as anything, and they could always start searching for another doctor if that one refused, so in the end they yielded. Nayeli forbid Oro from making the phone call, though, knowing the Rabbit's baseline temperment and what that was likely to mean for the conversation.
Winter came to a close and spring got into full swing. The weather turned warm, making Oro and Sarahi's work more comfortable, if not more productive. Tuli once again progressed rapidly through her pregnancy, much to the consternation of the doctor, and any attempt to take an ultrasound once again provided only a perplexing picture reminiscent of a tightly coiled snake. It was unnerving, just as it had been the previous year, but at least this time the doctor didn't waste time trying to correct the picture. The old Beaver just tapped his braod tail and wagged his mustache and muttered something about making a mockery of his field as he went on about the care of his client in all professional manner. Finally, in roughly the span of a single season, Tuli carried through her pregnancy without difficulty or complication...or any child to show for it.
"I don't know what's going on in this house," the doctor sighed as Nayeli and Oro walked him to the door, "And it's none of my business, I guess, or one of you would have filled me in, yes?" he asked, giving both of them a dubious look. When neither jumped to answer, he continued, "But I wouldn't recommend it continue, if you can prevent it. I don't suppose I need to tell you it takes a toll on a woman. Not just physically." He stopped at the door and handed Nayeli a spare card from his pocket. "That said, if the condition returns, you may call me again. I don't know that I'd trust any of the younger doctors not to make a hullabaloo about this. Everyone seems to be itching to get their name in the journals these days," he huffed, then gave them a curt goodbye and closed the door behind him.
Oro snorted a silent good-riddence. "Old crank. He's not even calling it a ‘pregnancy' anymore."
"I don't know that I blame him," Nayeli sighed, leaning against the door and rubbing her tired face. She and Tuli had not been alone this time, but the bulk of the stress still seemed to have fallen on them, and she was nearly as exhausted as her mother upstairs. "You made a good decision, getting him back, though," she admitted, patting Oro's chest as the pair started back upstairs, "His bedside manner was even better than last time. Probably because there were no new surprises this time. And he's been very discreet and focused on Mom's health."
Oro figured he had better, for what the family had paid him...but the Rabbit kept that little remark inside his own head. His wife needed some sympathy right now, not his customary grumpiness. Together, they went back upstairs to check on Tuli one last time before everyone went to their separate rooms, and the older Lioness could get some real, comfortable sleep for the first time in weeks.
