the incessant itching is putting everyone on edge - or at least drageda's fiery guardian spirit, who'd spent the last day pacing in circles near the border, trying to resist the urge to chew her toes til they bled. furi'd gone off somewhere, artaax is.. artaax (and she's still sort of trying to avoid him), and bobby is - not very high on her list of considerations, to be frank, which means she's no one to distract herself with. 

abruptly the gona lets out a frustrated groan and flops onto the earth, defeated. she needs to suck it up and go to portia. right after she lays in the dirt and contemplates the temporary misery of her existence for a little while. at least the snow feels sort of nice on her irritated skin.

 from her desolate earth-bound throne, blixen's attention is momentarily enraptured by the snow - she knows what it is, logically, but it is novel anyway. normally she thinks she would hate this wet and cold feeling but it is a fantastic distraction against the everpresent irritation of her skin, at least right now.

she smells nomi's approach before she sees her and twists to look up at her, still prone. "hei," the girl greets, smiling - she hasn't gotten to see nomi much lately, not since briefly at the borders when artaax ... did the thing. "it's cold," blix adds, though whether she is complaining or not is somewhat ambiguous - finally the ginger rolls to her feet and shakes slightly, trying to rid her ruddy pelt of the lingering snow that still clings.

nomi tells her it's going to get colder - blix's brow furrows momentarily. she's known that of course, but thinking about it compared to the cold she's currently experiencing is a whole 'nother story. the gona falls into step besides her nomi easily. her side itches. she resists the urge, though her expression is twitching faintly. "what was it like last year? winter, i mean," she asks curiously. it's a trite line of conversation, even for her, but it offers distraction from both her itching and from - all of the rest of it, artaax's kill and mother's staying at the caldera (she'll be back before winter, right? blix's heart seizes in her chest at the thought). her mouth is set in a thin line, expression distant, unsure if she wants nomi to bring anything up or stick to the small-talk.

 

it's a very nomi answer and she smiles despite herself. having grown up with her tendency to be - brisk - with answers, it's almost reassuring at this point. 

that said.. "will mother be able to travel back in the cold?" she asks, though she already has an idea of the answer. no one's talked about it (and of course there is still her deepest fear that mother died after they left, though surely hux and eljay would return to tell them and they haven't -- yet) but mother's condition was bad - crossing the teekons in the snow would be dangerous, she thinks. but maybe she's wrong - maybe nomi will reassure her otherwise.

 it is what she expected, but not what she wanted. sometimes blixen thinks all the not-knowing is worse than either other choice, and then feels guilty, but - but it's so hard. her stomach has been in knots for months. nomi does say something reassuring, though; she thinks about towhee (who was studying for her mastery!) and feels a bit calmer. and eljay is there, too, and she didn't spend any time with her aunt and uncle but they seemed kind, too. "you're right," she says quietly, almost a murmur - not soothed but steady-sounding. if anything, she wants nomi to know that she's grateful for the open dialogue, especially after she was so patient with blix's tantrums before.

the next thing nomi says does take her by surprise. not because she doubted nomi's feelings, but because it feels strange to be told them so obliquely. is this one of those things, the shifting of boundaries between them as blixen grows up? it speaks to - a kind of trust the gona worries she hasn't earned yet. "you could," she says tentatively, "eske and tirgatao - and dio, they'd all keep watch for you. and me and artaax, too." already the ginger knows her nomi will say no, because heda is a special thing, and blix gets that, but still. lord knows if she'd be allowed she'd be halfway back to the caldera already - dragging furi with her this time, of course.

 to her surprise, nomi does not rebuke the offer. immediately she regrets volunteering to stay and help watch drageda - okay, yes, duty is important and she doesn't actually like leaving drageda's borders if she can help it but, but! she didn't think nomi would just go along with it. "sha," the gona says - well, she's not gonna go back on her promise now. "but - if she can't come back, i wanna - i'd like to go in the spring. i can - take furi." blix is careful to phrase the request as politely as she can manage. surely nomi won't object to that - spring is safe enough for travel, she's a gona and so is furi (whether or not furi would actually want to tag along is not a thing that seems worth considering). her expression turns slightly pleading - how can nomi resist these patented puppy-dog eyes?

nomi agrees - well, sorta - and blix can't help the wide grin that overtakes her, even as she finally gives in and scratches her demandingly-itchy side. "mochof," she says, voice warm and pleased. for a beat she focuses on addressing the crop of itches that sprung while she talked and finally shakes her head and fixes nomi with a slightly sheepish look. "nomi, i think i gotta go find portia," she admits, a bit embarrassed, "or i'm gonna chew my foot off."