"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
oh, my love, don't forsake me. take what the water gave me ..
The new mother gets far, but not far enough. She waits, day and night, with her twins near the border of her homeland but never passes through it. There’s something about the way the boys play together that makes Circinae never want to return to Taiga. The innocence still blooming in those cheeks that ache from smiling and laughter are enough to bring her to tears, but only when she thinks of the time that’s passing. Soon enough, they’ll be on their own and they won’t need her around for comfort, or storytelling, or to keep the burrs from tangling their growing manes. She’ll just be their dam, nothing more and nothing less.
It doesn’t stop her from selfishly hoarding every moment in between, though. The water wolf, sometimes green-and-navy mare, is more than capable of keeping the roaming troupe together and satisfied for entertainment. Summer was an easy season to watch young things grow and out here, they could be together with more of their kind: other mothers and their young. Even when the weather turns and the trio is forced to shelter beneath the boughs of the Forest, Circinae keeps her son’s eyes bright with her parlor tricks and wolfish mannerisms. The joy they bring to her life finally eclipses the shadow that Raeanne had left so long ago - even if the pain remains, lodged deep in her breast.
Her sons will never fear abandonment, ever. She promises them that much every night while they curl to her sides for warmth.
Today, however, they find themselves revelling in the early sunlight of what seems to be a beautiful day. For now the clouds are sparse and the humidity low, Circinae barely even breaks a sweat trying to keep up with her colts and their endless energy as they make their way to a clear spot. She watches them; nay, watches them disappear to discover hidden things in the grass while she herself lounges easily in her natural form. A flick of the ear now and again but for that, the shifter is mostly immobile. It isn’t until her younger one, Crevan, bounds out of her sight that she stirs, calling, “Crevan! Not too far! Come back now!” With an exasperated sigh to follow.
In minutes Corvus will be at his heels so she chooses to be proactive, moving forward to stop the escapees even though her curiosity is piqued to see what the two had found.
Let's say sunshine for everyone, but as far as I can remember we've been migratory animals living under changing weather.
The sunburnt mare is dreaming. She dreams mostly for others, but today she dreams for herself. She dreams of her past lives, of days on the plains, dancing under the stars. She dreams of her first and only love, a sky-speckled man the color of dark water at midnight. She dreams of the many foals she's helped cross into this world through the vessels of their dams. Four hooves pitter-patter closer and closer, until her brain realizes they are not a dream. Her jade eyes flutter open and she feels the earth beneath her. Little colt hooves bound closer, and as she judges their next trajectory, she blocks the path. She's greeted by a pair of twin boys, they have the beautiful stench of love hanging all over them.
Now boys, where ya'll going with all that love your mama's dressed you in? She speaks jovially, looking up as a resplendent mare comes trailing behind them. She looks endearingly exhausted, and Jah-Lilah can't help but feel some type of way almost instantly. A genuine smile covers her pretty face as she greets the new mother. Hey mama. As if one wasn't enough, huh? Her tone is not mocking, and her head is tilted to meet the young mother's eyes. They swam like the ocean, with a purity to match. Jah-Lilah was officially intrigued. It had been years since she had seen equine this color, it reminded her of the plains from whence she had come. She sidles closer to the evergreen lady, herding the colts back to where they belong.
Someday we will foresee obstacles through the blizzard. Today we will sell our uniforms and leave together.
oh, my love, don't forsake me. take what the water gave me ..
Oh, Circy remembers when her dreams seemed like lifetimes. The memory of those beautiful (sometimes terrifying) journeys had left her shaken when she leapt back to awareness after a good night's sleep. In fact, that’s how she feels now; even as Corvus disappears from sight the touch of a nightmare seems to collide with reality and rattles her with a sense of deja vu until she’s wordlessly screaming for them to return to her side. The memory of watching another small, reddish body disappear from her sight is all too familiar in this instant.
But her worry is needlessly awoken. As she tops the small hillock, Circinae’s vision is swimming with tears that soon refresh themselves out of joy. They haven’t been taken, her boys, they’ve been stopped - halted in their disobedience by a nearby stranger who oozes a warmth that Circy thinks may be unequal to any other creature she’s ever met before. “Hey mama.” A voice rings out, the introduction matched by a light flutter of laughter as the shifter sways gracefully down the incline to meet them. “I keep having to remind myself that children are a blessing, not a curse.” She hums, sheepish now that her inability to keep them together is evident.
With deadly accuracy and frightening speed the new dam lands a sore nip on Crevan’s rump, following the action with a hard stare in his brother’s direction. They were more trouble than she could have imagined and though she wants to admonish them aloud, she finds that the look of betrayal darkening Crevan’s face is enough punishment for one day. It pained her to reprimand him anyhow. “I’m sorry for disturbing you.” She murmurs, turning back to find the easy going mare close enough to touch.
She should move, put some distance between them; they were hardly friends, after all. Yet she can’t, better still she won’t back away. Inside of her there’s still a longing for companionship that runs dry when Canaan disappears. For some reason before now that knowledge had never bothered her … but when her stark blue eyes settle into the gaze opposite hers, it sparks an ache that curls in the pit of her belly. “I’m Circinae. Call me Circy, if you’d like.”
Circinae
ooc: I loveeeee Jah-Lilah, sorry you've been waiting forever
The sea-foam mare reeks of fear and worry, then all of a sudden relief. The mix of emotions lets Jah-Lilah know the type of mother the girl is. She's seen dams abandon their progeny at only hours old, but it was not my star-child's job to judge, only to pick up the pieces. She's nursed them back to health or put them out of their misery, whatever the Earth-Mother required of her. This cerulean equine though, she was different. A strength oozed from her. Any mare that could successfully birth twins, let alone twin boys, LET ALONE one with wings! Dayuuuuum. Special.
Jah-Lilah could only ever recall one other girl birthing two healthy twins and surviving. It was many seasons ago, and the mare was creamy in complexion. Only a few shades lighter than these boys, come to think of it. Her mane was fire though, the color of ripe oranges. It had been a hard delivery, the mother barely lived, but she did it. The apricot-maned lady was the closest thing Jah had ever had to a sister, and she missed her fiercely. But! No matter now. That was back when Jah-Lilah had lived on the beach, with a clan of shore dwelling unicorns. They had taught her to swim.
She's snapped back from her reminiscing by the loving but sharp tone of the siren ambling down the hill toward her, the mare almost canine in her movements. Or perhaps it was something else, Jah-Lilah do be tripping sometimes. She wears an embarrassed look at she cracks a joke about motherhood, and Jah-Lilah laughs with her, knowing all to well about wild-ass kids. "They better recognize, huh?" She comments encouragingly as the young mother doles out a light punishment to her babes. Clearly, having to be good cop AND bad cop was breaking her poor, bleeding heart.
Jah's ears swivel as the girl begins apologizing, a look of genuine disbelief of her face. "Bothering me? Honey, if you and these two mini-nightmares were bugging me, I'd just move out the way. Your problems are yours." She reaches out her muzzle to exchange breath with this new, captivating creature across from her. "The Earth-Mother named me Jah-Lilah, but you may call me what you please." Jah-Lilah had never seen anyone like this bright, unique mare, and she was excited. She bobs her head and moves her nose down the girl's crest, sniffling and snorting. She squeals quietly, flicking her tail. She was enjoying the company of this creature, more so than any others she had met in the lush forest thus far, and yearned to be closer to her. "Why are you so far from home with your children, Wolf-of-the-Water?"
...The sun rises slowly as you walk away from all the fears and all the faults you've left behind.
oh, my love, don't forsake me. take what the water gave me ..
There’s something undeniably different about Jah-Lilah. From her name, to her overall appearance, to the accent in her tone; Circinae’s curiosity is hooked. Certainly she wasn’t a beqanna descendant - that would be too impossible to be true. The creatures here were obsessed with paltry things like recognition and power, whereas Jah seemed to be much too light-hearted for such games. Circy likes her. “Your name is a mouthful like mine, if you don’t mind me saying.” The shifter laughs, “So I’ll call you Jah.”
The intimacy of their introduction is primal, something that Circinae can relate to and appreciate when she’d become so accustomed to formal greetings, so the feeling of hot breath over her face and the sound of light squeals in the air takes her back to the old days - before the reckoning. Her own head bobs gently, lips parting to nip the air above Jah’s cheek playfully before she replies, “Who says we’re far from home, hmm?” Her eyes dart around the Meadow, trying to jokingly pinpoint the imaginary gossip. She returns to Jah’s attention with a warm smile to match the earth-loving mare’s energy, ears tipping forward. “For all you know we could be very, very close.”
They were, but then again they weren’t. No need for her new friend to understand such things though. “And you? What lured you away from your home?”
06-28-2017, 01:12 PM (This post was last modified: 06-28-2017, 01:13 PM by Jah-Lilah.)
Once there was a way to get back homeward...
Jah-Lilah chuckles warmly at the sea-foam mare's observation about her name. Where Jah came from her name was boring, so the thought of being considered exotic pleased her. They favored different names in different places she had visited, and Beqanna was no exception. There was a variety of names, some easy to pronounce and others a mouthful. Jah-Lilah loved them all, the uniqueness of this place was mesmerizing. Jah-Lilah is sincere when she speaks. "That's fine, you can call me whatever you like."
The sea-foam mother's teeth click together near her cheek, and my bohemian baby is absolutely captivated. The fluid way that Wolf-of-the-Water moves is akin to the river not to far from here. Each motion is effortless and divine, and Jah moves her muzzle softly down the girl's neck. There is no hesitation, each move is confident as she steps even more into Circinae's personal space. She reaches the base of her neck, and begins chewing on the strands of blue knotted together. She works a tangle out, softly raking her teeth down the now-smooth strands and murmuring quietly. "Are you close though? To home? You seem lost, somehow, but you know this place well."
Jah-Lilah is certainly feeling more at home now than she ever has since her arrival in Beqanna. There is a magnetism about this lovely mare beside her. "My home is the Earth, my home is everywhere. I go where my feet take me, and when it's time to leave I just leave. I came upon Beqanna like I come upon everything, by chance." She moves her nibbling down the siren's shoulder to her elbow, inhaling deeply, nose pressed to her skin. She smells like salt, like seaweed. An ocean breeze, perhaps. It's enchanting. Her ears are turned in separate directions, one swiveling wildly to follow the movements of the rowdy twins. Her other ear is trained on Circinae, eager to learn more.
oh, my love, don't forsake me. take what the water gave me ..
“Such an easy-going companion!” The little mare thinks while the boys circle about them easily. It had been something of a lifetime ago that Circinae had fallen this quickly into countenance with someone, and another mare at that. The last one (she remembers, how could she ever forget?) was her fiery little companion and in a strange, very emotional sort of occurrence, Jah reminds her of Raeanne. They mirror each other in color and disposition, so closely that Circy nearly welcomes the touch of skin-on-skin. As Jah-Lilah’s mouth works the curve of her neck the shifter groans audibly, unable to express verbally just how incredible the tenderness felt. Canaan had some competition, it would seem.
That last thought has her laughing in soft, rolling tones. “I am close, actually. Taiga was my homeland before …" She begins, but the sentence draws to an unconcluded end while she fights relaxation. The gentle tug of Jah’s teeth against her coiled mane is hard to ignore. “... before I accidentally got drawn away.” The mother finally finishes. Circy's was a tale made even more curious by telling, so for now she keeps things simple. No need to overwhelm or confuse the poor woman. “That was before the hellions, though.” She quips, bright baby blues snapping to where they’ve begun roughhousing again. Boys.
As if by their own design, her teeth make good work of Jah’s back themselves, circling deeply where the muscle rounded out and scraping lightly over the tight, thin skin above the other mare’s spine. An ancient practice of their kind, something the little wolf had (again) almost forgotten about. “It’s been so long since I’ve been away though - I’m afraid of what I might find when I do return.” She murmurs quizzically. Her lips twitch, moving against the fiery coat of the stranger while they form a smile, “But I bet you know all about that, mysterious traveler.”
Jah-Lilah was racking her brain to think of the last time she'd been touched like this when it wasn't in the heat of passion. She couldn't remember. She lived each fleeting moment like it was her last, but strangely she wanted this minute to stay forever. The feeling of the girl's teeth and lips on her shoulder and back was intoxicating. She leaned into the sensation, a long, low noise coming from deep in her throat, sounding almost like a growl. Her eyes were closed in absolute ecstasy, she didn't realize how much she had missed this type of companionship until she felt it again. There was something about this mare that drew her in, she couldn't put a name to it, but it was there. She was a moth to a flame.
As she speaks of the place called Taiga, there is a serenity in her voice, but also hesitation. It piqued Jah's roving curiosity, and she couldn't help but ask. "Drawn away? By what? Or is the better question, by whom?" Jah had an ornery look in her eye as she grinned at the girl. "I'm sure the mountain of a man who fathered these two urchins of yours sang a lovely song. Is that why you left? To follow him?" Jah's tone was baiting, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. Damn she truly liked this unique equine! She was absolutely breathtaking!
Jah had never allowed herself to get too close to anyone, her vagabond lifestyle would never allow it. She had many lovers and friends, but had left each and every one of them behind. The Earth-Mother had just never seen fit for her to walk the same path with anyone yet. Jah had conceded that perhaps that was going to always be the case, and had come to terms with it. As the sea foam mare presents her with a rhetorical question, a sad smile comes over her face. "All too well, Wolf-Of-The-Water. The difference is I try not to think about the things I've left behind. They are gone for a reason. I have no children, and have never soul-tied with anyone. I have many loves and lovers, but that's where it ends. The Earth-Mother put things in my path she wants me to have, and takes them when she's finished. An old man dies, a young girl lives. It's balance, my darling." She continues to work her way along the girl's body, treating her emerald coat like it was a fresh field of grass. The red mare refuses to miss a spot. So here Jah is, hip to head with her very own mysterious stranger, wanting to be shoulder friends. It is a strange feeling Jah has, the urge to move closer to this mare instead of further away. Normally when she feels like this, it is only to succumb to her sexual urge, an insatiable beast who will devour anything and anyone. This eerie emotion she has now though, it confuses her. She doesn't know how to deal with it, so she channels the nervous energy into preening Circinae's velvety soft body.
...And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.
oh, my love, don't forsake me. take what the water gave me ..
Jah is like an uncontainable child, probing Circinae for answers to questions that might not have been asked on a first meeting, and Circy (so very much like the mother she is) chooses easily to indulge her curiosity. How many chances would she get to tell her tale anyways? “That mountain of a man you’re speaking about is Canaan.” The green mare chuckles, feeling the heat against her cheeks though the action goes unseen. “And I would go anywhere he asked of me, but no - that’s not the reason I was drawn away.” She sighs, neck extending so that she could rest her head against the supple curve of Jah-Lilah’s back. Her navy mane drapes languidly across the fire-red mare’s coat, giving a striking contrast between them.
“You sound world-weary and ancient.” She murmurs, rubbing her nose and then her forehead against the jutting bump of Jah’s hip. “So perhaps you can tell me about the island I was transported to on my first jump.” Circy muses, a cheeky smile rounding her viridian lips upwards as she pulls slowly away from her companion. A moment of silence draws out between them and then with a start, the little shifter mare shakes her head. “Forgetful me, I’m a teleporter. That’s how I ‘jump’, so to speak.” She laughs airily.
The boys are tiring now, winding down into the long, bent stalks while they wait for their dam to direct them into a new place. She’ll take them elsewhere, and soon enough too - but first she pauses to press her head firmly against the straight line of Jah’s face as a parting gesture. “Come to the Taiga sometime!” The blue-tipped mare urges, that pleading tone touching her bright blue eyes. “I’ll tell you all about that and much more.”
With a sideways grin she shifts, slipping one skin for another and shrinking down to become a chocolate wolf, slender and wiry. The animal yips once, turns away with a wag of her tail, and trots ahead to pass the boys and make a new path. The three make good time and before long, their retreating silhouettes are disappearing between the weave of trunk and limb.
