"We've been through this."
"Just one more time."
"Twice - "
"Please? Just once more."
There was a long pause. The kimeti stag in front of her was an imposing thing, his head held high and slightly tilted so that the long locks of his hair trailed down his neck in sleek lines. Behind him, the spiked tail slid back and forth through the high grass like a restless snake, coiling every so often against one of his hooves before slithering free again. Trapped had only met him once before, but she still remembered his eyes in the dark, gleaming brightly.
But not meanly. And not so intensely that the initial fear had lingered. Instead, it had dissipated as soon as Fierce Warrior had spoken, ebbing away into something more like reassurance, because his voice was calm and level and set at ease her nervous notions about what her life was going to be like in the future.
And now she was bothering him, but he didn't seem to mind. Much.
"Please?" Trapped asked again, her eyes as big and round as she could make them, practically oozing innocence from every pore. Fierce Warrior gave her a pointed look that said he knew exactly what she was trying to do and didn't buy one second of it - but because he was who he was, he relented.
"I bless your children with strength and joy," he said indulgently, pacing in a slow circle around Throat-Trapped Breath. She watched him with eager anticipation, her own tail swishing back and forth (though not nearly as impressively as Fierce's). "I bless them with the ability to learn and the knowledge to know right from wrong and the guidance to choose their own paths in life. And I bless you, their mother, with happiness and peace at knowing your children will be safe and cared for and well-loved."
It was the same thing he'd said before, almost word for word, but somehow it hit more heavily this time, a little more intensely. Trapped let it wash over her, let the emotions run free, and reminded herself that this was a good thing. She had wanted this so desperately, so painfully, and now she was going to get it, but the anxiety was still there, eating at the corners of her thoughts like a wasp hovering on the edge of a petal.
But Fierce Warrior was calm, his mere presence something to be happy for, to be grateful for. He had come back when she had asked, and even when she had not asked, he had offered her a blessing. Some of the tension eased from Trapped's body. She offered Fierce a slightly sheepish smile. "Thanks. I know you've done it for me a few times but I really appreciate it."
"You're welcome," said Fierce kindly, and nudged his side reassuringly against hers. "Don't worry. You have children already. You'll continue to be a fine mother to all of them."
Trapped exhaled a long breath. "I sure hope so," she said, and followed him out of the clearing.
"Just one more time."
"Twice - "
"Please? Just once more."
There was a long pause. The kimeti stag in front of her was an imposing thing, his head held high and slightly tilted so that the long locks of his hair trailed down his neck in sleek lines. Behind him, the spiked tail slid back and forth through the high grass like a restless snake, coiling every so often against one of his hooves before slithering free again. Trapped had only met him once before, but she still remembered his eyes in the dark, gleaming brightly.
But not meanly. And not so intensely that the initial fear had lingered. Instead, it had dissipated as soon as Fierce Warrior had spoken, ebbing away into something more like reassurance, because his voice was calm and level and set at ease her nervous notions about what her life was going to be like in the future.
And now she was bothering him, but he didn't seem to mind. Much.
"Please?" Trapped asked again, her eyes as big and round as she could make them, practically oozing innocence from every pore. Fierce Warrior gave her a pointed look that said he knew exactly what she was trying to do and didn't buy one second of it - but because he was who he was, he relented.
"I bless your children with strength and joy," he said indulgently, pacing in a slow circle around Throat-Trapped Breath. She watched him with eager anticipation, her own tail swishing back and forth (though not nearly as impressively as Fierce's). "I bless them with the ability to learn and the knowledge to know right from wrong and the guidance to choose their own paths in life. And I bless you, their mother, with happiness and peace at knowing your children will be safe and cared for and well-loved."
It was the same thing he'd said before, almost word for word, but somehow it hit more heavily this time, a little more intensely. Trapped let it wash over her, let the emotions run free, and reminded herself that this was a good thing. She had wanted this so desperately, so painfully, and now she was going to get it, but the anxiety was still there, eating at the corners of her thoughts like a wasp hovering on the edge of a petal.
But Fierce Warrior was calm, his mere presence something to be happy for, to be grateful for. He had come back when she had asked, and even when she had not asked, he had offered her a blessing. Some of the tension eased from Trapped's body. She offered Fierce a slightly sheepish smile. "Thanks. I know you've done it for me a few times but I really appreciate it."
"You're welcome," said Fierce kindly, and nudged his side reassuringly against hers. "Don't worry. You have children already. You'll continue to be a fine mother to all of them."
Trapped exhaled a long breath. "I sure hope so," she said, and followed him out of the clearing.