Stone Circle silverweave

to make it interesting what if he arrived the same time she got back :O @Reverie <3

lestan mayfair had wanted to bring a gift.
and so he had taken a slim little branch from one of the birch trees around the creek, and between its golden leaves he had wound a green vine all hoary with frost, and baubles of ice, and added a clacking deer-hoof.
it clicked smartly as he made his way early that morning from the creek. he supposed he might stay till noon with reverie, if she wished, and then would return home to devote the day's remainder to his tasks and patrolling.
some of the little decorations did fall on his journey, but lestan was still pleased with the overall look. he called once for her and then stood proudly at the borders of the stone circle pack.

I was thinking about the same thing!!

She felt a little better as she returned to Kvarsheim. It was early, now; she'd spent the night lost in her own head, but not in the usual way. There was something softer about this experience, something she found comfort in. She was tired, but she didn't mind. Soon she would see Bjarna, and finally, finally that thought sparked some joy. For a moment she didn't even wonder what she would say to her.
Then she heard Lestan's call, and all of that anxiety came rushing back to her. Oh! What would Lestan say?
But she suddenly desperately wanted to see him. She called back to him, figuring she would be too slow to meet him before he started to wonder. Her carelessness the night before had only served to worsen the overall soreness that plagued her. Still, she tried to pick up a normal pace so that he might not see immediately that she was hurt. Her fur, fluffed up as it was from her recent bath, hid the worst of it, though he would surely still smell the blood on her.
All those thoughts fled when she saw him. Lestan! She couldn't help but exclaim every time she saw him; his presence brought her too much joy to be contained. And then she was running, forgetting her pain, forgetting the bear and her stupidity. She didn't even notice that he was holding something — all that mattered was that he was here.

<3

"reverie?" and then lestan's voice was choked with fear and horror; he dropped his gift and ran to her at once, smelling blood and water and wild places; he hunted blindly through her fur, pulling reverie close and exclaiming, "bear!"
only once had the mayfair ever seen such a horrendously fierce beast! and now his sunshine had been leveled! but she lived! she lived wounded and with his name on her lips.
"reverie!" lestan could not keep from it again. "you need a healer!"

He noticed immediately. Reverie slowed to a stop, a little miffed, but her disappointment was immediately swept away by the horror in his voice and her own distress to hear it. She noticed that he'd been holding something only because he dropped it, but before she could even wonder what it was, Lestan was there. She winced when he embraced her, but then she felt his warmth and realized how cold she was. She started to shiver. Then she started to cry.
She had felt okay, she had felt stronger and more capable, and now someone else was here and she was realizing all at once that she was not any of those things. The only thing she'd managed to do was survive. Barely, she thought, and that was what broke her.
Lestan's embrace became her anchor; she leaned into him, suddenly feeling the full weight of the time she'd spent alone and wounded. Kvarsheim doesn't have a healer, Reverie whispered through quiet tears, because it was all she could think to say. She blinked, a little startled by her own voice, and found some of her lost composure. But I'm okay. I can treat it myself. I was going to be a healer once, have I ever told you that? Not anymore, but... Lestan, it's okay, really.
Was she trying to soothe him, or herself? She wasn't sure if it would work either way.

no healer! "then let me take you home, to arric! or! perhaps he should come here!" it was all lestan could do not to wring his proverbial hands. "you can still be a healer!" he all but shouted, and leaned in to clean her wounds.
"but for now, i know enough to understand that these cuts can infect quickly." he looked into her eyes, tried to pull reverie back to him, to hold her there. "if you tell me what to find, i'll bring it." and he was completely devoted to her in that moment.

Oh! He was doing it again, he was saying so many things she could hardly keep up, and though Reverie adored him and his endless stream-of-thought manner of speech, she struggled to keep track of it all. He wanted to bring her to someone named Arric; he thought she could still be a healer; he was worried about infection; he wanted to help. She sorted through all of these things with great effort.
But she felt that if she said anything else, he would only start again, and then she would never be able to keep up. So instead she tucked herself in his arms with a suddenly-fierce affection, as if to stifle any further conversation with her embrace. Lestan, She murmured, trying to divert his attention away from her wounds. Lestan, I want - will you just hold me? Just for a second?

he did so and with quickness; he pulled her closer, feeling the race of her pulse and feeling his own heart quicken in return!
how lofty was the feeling of love! for surely that was what it was, this rose-gold sensation swirling in his throat and gut and veins and all parts of their chests pushed together, their fur meshing.
he thought of them. he thought of their homes, of the bear, of her wounds.
and then nothing; lestan was only deeply happy and fairy-light.

It was easier than she'd expected to quiet his frantic rambling. For a moment it struck her, how different they were; would that prove a fatal flaw, in time? Ironic, then, that it was his words which had drawn her to him. She needed these silences, but how could she be anything but starry-eyed when he went on about something beautiful, or about himself?
Reverie told herself they would figure it out, they would figure all of it out, and allowed herself to just feel safe and seen for a moment. More than a moment, maybe. She'd never been held quite like this before. He held her as if she was something fragile that might fly away from him at any moment, a pale golden feather on the breeze. Maybe she was; maybe she would. But in this moment, she was only his. She kissed him again, this time only a careful touch of her lips to his jaw. Last time, she thought, she'd been too bold. This time would be different.

reverie kissed him and his body came alive. lestan returned it, mouth soft then firm. at last he parted them with a low sound and a gasp, all of his veins limned in gold and moon and her, her!
oh! he did not know what to do!
he set his forehead against hers and looked toward kvarsheim. "let me take you there. you need to rest. you need — medicine."
he did not want to part, he wanted to go on holding her. but the responsibility of keeping her safe and tending her wounds; that fell to the people of the stone circle.

She'd meant to distract him, but — ! Dizzied and distracted herself now, she could only think oh wow, he smells nice... and what if we stayed like this forever?
Lestan was not so easily derailed; they parted, and she whined softly under her breath. Not yet, Reverie pleaded, thinking that reality felt too cold; she did not want to shed the warmth of this moment so quickly. I want to spend time with you. Her wounds could wait; they'd waited days already, and they would still be there when she was ready to deal with them. Lestan, though, he would go home. She wasn't ready for that.

back lestan pulled her into his arms, but his worry overtook his affection. "then i'll stay a while," he said earnestly. "but you need tending. please, reverie."
the blue-gold of his eyes searched her own; surely she saw the reason of it, even beneath his own reluctance to release her!

Okay, How could she say no? Please, he'd said, and it was as if something in her was breaking softly. It seemed terribly unfair! But she knew that he was only worried. Maybe - we can search for a few things together, and I can teach you a bit? There really isn't anything anyone can do for me that I can't do myself. She still had the knowledge, after all, and the ability. It was the face of suffering she had turned away from, those horrible screaming eyes she could never quite meet.

"all right." a few days then. lestan began to guide them both back toward the borders of kvarsheim.
where he wanted reverie to be.
where she needed to be.
his eyes looked into hers; he kissed her forehead. "call them. i won't leave."
lestan expected that bjarna at least might allow him to stay a night. after that he did not know.

Call them. She didn't want to! A necessary evil, she knew, but couldn't it wait just a little longer? Reverie grasped for something else, anything else, and found it quickly. Okay, but - first, what is that? Her eyes went past him then, to what he'd left in the snow. She swept past him to pick it up before he could remind her to call for Bjarna and Gunnar.
The delicate make of it seemed to hold together quite precariously as she carefully lifted it from the snow. A frosted vine, golden leaves, little droplets of ice; some of them fell, but she hardly noticed because she was so charmed by the deer hoof. You made this? It's beautiful. He had to have made it, she thought, and was enchanted by the thought. Visual art had always felt like a realm reserved for nature and its wild whims. But Lestan had captured the heart of the frozen wilds in his delicate creation. She was, in a word, impressed.

lestan stood stiffly by, then shyly as she discovered the gift he had dropped in the snow. "yes! for you, reverie," he said, eyes caressing her face. "i wasn't sure at all what you might like, so i just added it all!"
he laughed softly and then looked at her, helplessly held, as she explored the finer points of his gift. it was not so bad after all, he decided, though his look thinned with worry as lestan beheld again the marks on her shoulder.

For her. I love it! And she did. She decided then that she would keep it, as long as it lasted. Thank you, Lestan. Reverie looked back at him with her own shyness then, and added, No one has ever given me anything like this before... it's like art. It is art. Wasn't it? Her gaze found the gift again, full of wonder.

he was all smiles and blushing a moment later; he kissed her cheek and pressed the stave closer. "keep it. i hope it reminds you not only of me, but the snow. and — dancing." lestan let out a little sigh.
"you make me feel — artistic."
his eyes softly shone.

If we keep this brief and vague it shouldn't bork timelines toooo much I think @Gunnar

Surely there was no higher compliment! Reverie giggled softly, her face warm under his kiss. I always thought I'd marry someone artistic, An idle thought, until she voiced it and realized exactly what she had said. I mean, um - I should call for Gunnar.
So she stepped back from Lestan rather quickly and did exactly that.

lestan grinned and flustered with a blush under her talk of art and marriage!!
he steadied himself at her side, waiting for the man called gunnar, which felt like a distinguished name indeed.

Gunnar Ivarr Lodbruk, moved towards the call. Sandy encased legs moved through the ground. It was a good day today for his bones. They didn't ache near as much as usual. They were looser, he knew it was only a matter of time, before they felt worse. So today he was doing as much as he was able too, without overdoing it.

Grey eyes looked out of sandy mask as he met teh gaze of first Reverie, a frown marring his face at her wounds, and then to the brown male at her side.

Reverie what has happened? A low tone in his voice, he eyed the male, she was comfortable around him, so he didn't think it was him, though as he moved closer, he blinked.

A bear. He knew those wounds. His father bore scars from such a thing. Why didn't you come to find me to tend this, well before this.

He sniffed her over, there was no infection. She had cleaned them well.

Gunnar's presence was stern and fatherly — all the things she absolutely did not want while with Lestan! Reverie shifted anxiously as he questioned her. She hadn't thought Gunnar would know anything about tending wounds, after what he'd said at the meeting. Well, I just got back, and I don't think anyone can do anything for it that I can't do myself - and then Lestan - oh! This is Lestan - Mayfair! He always introduced himself with his last name, so she figured that she should too. She blinked, a little confused by her own scattered thoughts, and forged ahead. I was wondering if - he could stay for a little while. With me. And I'll explain everything later, I promise!

the man that arrived was quite old and looked him over with a father's observant eye. lestan quailed only a little, lowering in respect and deference, and then he positively goggled at reverie as she spoke up.
stay with her!? for a little bit?
his heart felt like a thundering herd of reindeer sweeping down the side of a mountain.

Gunnar was surprised at her questions and though he railed against allowing another into their borders, he said nothing at first.

Gunnar looked him over. Very well. He can stay, but I ask that you not bring anyone else into the packlands.

Gunnar sighed and dipped his head. Aloe and thyme needs put on those wounds.

Wrapping!

Thank you, Gunnar, She breathed softly, and stepped forward to hug him. After that, she was eager to go her own way with Lestan. Reverie spent as long as she could dodging the subject of her wounds, but eventually she gave in and allowed Lestan to convince her to tend to them, to let him help. Then, at some point, sensing that he felt kept from his home whether it was her own projection or his actual mood, she sent him home.