Firefly Glen beauty and the beasts

He had not come to the center of the circle with the others, but Sialuk laid eyes upon @Glaukos. She knew him once, a stubborn sort with darkness clouding his spirit, as it had once clouded her own. The raindrop knew also they may share blood, but her journey away had taught her that he likely did not share enough to harm any children they might have. He had grown into himself since she had last seen him, fuller around the middle and strong.

It has been many moons since I have seen you. You do not join the others, why? she asked. The sweet smell of sage-brush followed her, and the moonlight bounced off her coat.

There was hollering, and dancing, which were both aspects that Glaukos was not accustomed to having witnessed before; he felt intimately out of place, and kept away from these other men. His eye wandered inevitably to the familiar, but somehow still nameless, shape of Sialuk; she approached him and spoke, and he gruffly surveyed the group as he listened - a soldier, now. Stuck in his ways.

I do not know what to make of... all of this. He admits.

A beat later, as he lets his eye wander back to her for some further observation, he realizes how close they are standing. His spine straightens. I have sworn oaths to my leader, the general. It is not the behavior he expects of his soldiers. But, Germanicus was not here.

She listened, pulling a laugh from her chest when it wished to come to her mouth. He was not accustomed to their ways, but he seemed more cheerful now than he had been that day long ago. He was a soldier now, a warrior.

It suits you, she said, her voice laced with approval. She looked back to the dancing and laughing and pairing off. The snow melt will come soon, and many will seek husbands or wives to bring babes into the world, she explained. Do you remember me? Sialuk? she asked. Perhaps he did not see her face the same as he once did.

She explained why they were there - although by this point it was obvious, what with the men throwing themselves at the women, and the women fawning in their way. These were all alien displays and Glaukos' sense of displacement and alienation only grew the longer he was around it.

The woman did not seem put-off by his stoicism. She mentioned her name, and it was enough to focus his attention wholly upon her, instead of the goings-on of the gathering.

I remember your mother, he answered; but he did not say more than that, as it wasn't necessary (plus, he had learned by now not to run his mouth, and had only poor thoughts of Kukutux).

It felt as though he was being studied, and he shifts his weight, feeling tense.
Is that why you are here? To... seek? Glaukos was not a conversationalist; he'd never been good at that sort of thing, and it wasn't a skill often utilized by the soldier within Mereo. He did not know why he felt compelled to involve himself.

He spoke of anaa, and Sialuk smiled. She could only assume he had good things to say of her. (Kukutux could do no wrong in the star's eyes.)

Aya, she replied. Moonspear yearns for children, and I will have my sons and daughters there. It is a thing I cannot do alone. Is this why you have come? He did not seem to know what he had come to, and yet he made no move to leave now that it had been said to him. Perhaps he merely wished to keep watch while they were... distracted.

Moonspear? The name meant nothing to him, except he could not recall the village by that name (or any other at this point, but, it didn't sound right). Perhaps she had moved on from her witchmother and chosen another path.
I am a soldier of Mereo, in the eastern mountains, he explained with a touch more confidence than before, feeling the esteem of his position and all the work it had required of him. The general allows me leave from time to time. Or I am given missions to scout other places, to keep the peace and to report on the movements of things. Strangers, or prey. In this case Glaukos would have quite the story to tell Germanicus - if he chose to report on this at all, he mused to himself.
I heard the call and was... Curious.
He did not think to expose Sialuk to the rules and rigors of Mereo, though. It did not cross Glaukos' mind to mention the rules that made these moments taboo; or that he could not take a wife and be a soldier, really. He had made his promises.

Mereo. Sialuk knew of this village. Towhee had gone there after leaving Moonglow, and she thought that Caracal had gone there, too. Mereo is a good village. Many of my village sister's kin live there, she said. It was curiosity that brought him here, and perhaps a sense of duty, she suspected. The raindrop found herself somewhat disappointed that he had not come seeking a wife, but that did not mean he would not find one here.

And now that you have seen it? she asked, testing to see if he would stay or report to his angajukkâk.

She knew of Mereo? He looked at her with a new appreciation, giving his dark gaze a copper gleam. Glaukos wondered who her sister's kin was, but, the man had been on so many away-missions of late that he couldn't place names or faces; he had no idea if much had changed within Mereo, or who might be connected to Sialuk - and as a result, the witch. It gave him a chill to think she had eyes there, too.
Still, the man's pride was strong. He almost smiled at the confirmation that Mereo's strength was known this far west.
The spectacle of bodies and intentions might've been a good story, but the longer Glaukos lingered among them the less and less he thought Germanicus would want to hear about it. This event, whatever it was, sat far outside the realm of what the stone-faced general would consider important; perhaps garish was a better word for it.
I do not think he needs to know. He remarked after a lull in the conversation, having made up his mind. He watched Sialuk carefully, wondering what she might make of that. If Glaukos lingered, he could be in trouble - but only if it was known he cavorted in some ill-manner, according to Mereo custom. But if he did not speak of this to Germanicus at all, there was no reason he could not stay.

The raindrop dipped her head in agreement. There was nothing strategic to be gained by Mereo knowing of this night, unless of course they sought wives and husbands. Sialuk deduced that their customs were much different from that of her people.

Her eyes lingered on the other men and women then, a smile finding its way to her muzzle. She returned her attention to Glaukos then, plucking a flower from the wreath she wore around her neck. If not for you, then for one of Mereo who may seek a wife upon Moonspear, she said, laying the small yellow-green bud at his feet. It was a gesture of good will, both to Glaukos and the village he represented.

The woman plucked something from her decorations, laying a flower by the soldier's feet in an act so genuine and so soft, Glaukos was briefly stunned. He did not know if the flower itself held significance and did not really care - but this was a touching gift, along with her words. He was reminded of Tamar; having not thought of the kind woman or Epoch in many moons, that too came as a surprise. Flowers were of no use to a soldier, however Glaukos was careful not to trample the bud, and would be mindful to keep it pristine whenever it was he chose to go his own way.

He looked down at it for only a moment, and then to her, and away again, as if bashful — and maybe he was! The party was in full swing with the hollering of men and yet here he was off to the side, the wallflower, the guardian, the chaperone for all intents and purposes — but not excluded.

Glaukos wondered if he was really worth the attention. He did not dance, or sing, or involve himself among the other men in any way (if he did, it would be rougher than any game and they would certainly not appreciate it, but at least he knew that and kept them safe by staying back).

Thank you. He murmured, softened somehow.

last for me!

He accepted her gift; she felt his spirit soften, and the raindrop's own spirit shimmered with is gratitude. I will lay eyes upon your face again, she said, perhaps soon a journey to Mereo. Sialuk left him then, to mingle with the others and choose who else may receive an invitation to the spear.