Firestone Hot Springs you hit me like a hurricane

@Vairë

They weren't doing anything wrong, but Valiant had insisted on sneaking out of the plains with exaggerated care. No one saw them leave together — but several of those watching the children today knew, of course. Valiant had promised to bring treats or treasures for their help, even knowing it wasn't necessary.

It was just fun to sneak. And to laugh breathlessly and take off at a run once they were a safe distance away.

He talked about the geothermal pools, and how one could tell from sight and scent whether they were safe to wade into.

"The other nice thing is it's warm outside of them, too. So you don't freeze to death while you're drying off, or if you're just passing through and need a rest."

And indeed, the light dusting of snow disappeared once they drew near to the destination. The scent of sulfur grew stronger, but Valiant was too eager to pay it much mind. He passed up a few large, glassy pools of steaming water to find one just large enough to paddle around in, but shallow enough at the edges that they wouldn't have to.

"You should always dip a paw in and see how it feels," he told her, lying down at the edge to do just that. "Some of these pools can blister your skin. This one smells clean, but the water might still be hot."

He extracted his paw and tested the acidity with a lick.

"It's good for a swim," he said, looking back up at Vairë. "If you want to. We could just look around if you'd rather."

Their slipping from Moonglow camp made Vairë giggle like a child, like she was sneaking out of the ulaq to watch stars when she should be asleep. It made her feel young, in a way nothing else had.

She even threw in a few dancing steps and flamboyant leaps into her run, just for the sheer fun of it all. Doe bounded in the footsteps of the bear, her head held high, her breathless laughter filling the space between them.

Sulfur filled her nostrils as she followed Valiant, breath clouding from her nostrils. Upon his suggestion to do so, she stuck her paw into the water, pleased to find it to her liking. She made an appreciative noise, slipping in to idle by the metaphorical shore, looking up at the ice bear with a wide smile.

Are you going to swim as well? It would be silly to swim alone, no matter how good she was at it (which was a solid mediocre at best)

He watched her with a smile on his face, pleased to have been able to show her something new, something pleasant. He knew that Vairë carried burdens he did not know on her shoulders, and he was glad to bring a little levity into her life. Glad, too, to be the one providing levity, after almost a lifetime of being the downer.

At her word, he remembered his own body and stepped with her into the steaming water. He did not stop until it came up to his chest, though the ground continued to slope away toward the center of the spring. Valiant ducked his head under with his eyes squeeze shut, and then came up with a brisk shake to rid his face of the last flecks of blood leftover from the hunt.

"Something strange has happened," he said, his voice full of a quiet sort of wonder. He looked back at the doe, his eyes questioning. "Can I ask you about it? I know you know — spiritual things."

Moondoe blinked wide eyes at Valiant’s question. The water lapped sinuously around her as she stepped forward, leaning her head forward to listen, as if this was a secret whispered between them only.

Of course. There was honest curiosity upon her face, and a small tilt to her head, a furrow to her brow.

You are..alright, aren’t you? Was this spiritual thing a bad thing? Had a dark spirit come to haunt Valiant?

The isbjørn surprised himself with a laugh, flashing a smile that was a little uncertain, but no more joyful for it. "I'm okay," he promised. "Better than I've been in a long time. It's my sister. We found each other, and we'll both stay at Moonglow. We already talked to your momma about it. But — I didn't tell her..."

His head tilted as he tried to think of what he wanted to say. It occurred to him that he would have to own up to some thoughts he wished he hadn't thought — but he would be honest, he decided.

"I was asking myself if I could do this," he said quietly, lowering his gaze to the misty water. "If I could settle down somewhere knowing she was still out there. If I could bear to stop looking, give up hope."

He sighed.

"And I'd just decided that I couldn't. I wanted to, but she's my blood, my family... I'd just decided I had to keep looking, even if I wished for something else — "

Now he smiled, weakly, peeking up again as if waiting for reprimand. But he went on, his voice quiet, wondering:

"And then she was there. Like somebody must've been listening."

She listened, ears delicately cupped forward. Worry seasoned her brow as she watched the taller man, picking apart his words like a carrion bird.

Then, her mouth spread into a smile.

The spirits listen. She speaks in the sunshine language, straightening up with wonder in her eyes.

Your desire was strong enough, and her spirit heard. Sedna has guided your paths back together. She bobbed her head, an oddly cervine motion. In this, Vaire was the most sure she had ever been.

His head tilted to the side in askance when she spoke words he didn't understand. He could see by the shine of her eyes that they were in accord, however, and words he knew confirmed it a moment later. "I thought so, too," he said, although he had thought more than that as well. He had thought about destiny, and about the twisting tapestry of fate.

But perhaps it was too much. And perhaps it was too soon. And perhaps he felt perfectly at peace in this moment, even if something electric swam like a twisting sea creature through his veins.

"She's made my path real clear," he said as if in agreement, his smile as warm as the water. "I'll be glad goin' back to Moonglow knowin' I'm there to stay." His gaze dropped for a moment, bashful, but he had to look at her again when he said, "I confess, a whole lotta that's 'cause of you."

He was coming to Moonglow! She could not help the surprised little inhale, nor the flustered wiggle of her ears at his next words.

Ah, I am sure you will fine the Spine to your liking! She exaggerated a wink.

I will show you the best places to hide things, I don’t think anyone has ever found my stashes. Then, sobering,

I am…very glad you are coming with us.

Valiant huffed at her, turning his face away from her wink to hide a stupid grin. Her promises, though, drew his attention right back toward her.

"And just what have you been hidin'?" he asked in faux suspicion. He got the tone right, but he couldn't manage to sober his features until she spoke again. Those words wiped his face slack, so that the only emotion was a tender vulnerability in his eyes. He thought he'd been plenty clear with that line, and this was as much encouragement as he could've hoped for from the doe. More than that, though, he felt the strength of the statement echoing in his own veins. He was glad, too. Very glad. And there wasn't much that Vaire could do to change that.

This knowledge settled him. No matter how things ended up between them — this was still the right path.

"Me too," he replied, after swallowing several other responses that came to mind. And then, abruptly, the sentimentality of the moment became too much to bear. Valiant smacked a paw across the pool's surface to splash warm water in Vaire's face. His expression likely broadcast that this was an act of emotionally stunted desperation. He was surprised and a little horrified with himself, but he'd done it and by god, he wasn't gonna take it back.

He tried to form this confusion into an expression that said, What are you gonna do about it?

It was not terribly successful.

She leaned forward as if to tell a secret only for them to hear.

A few very cool rocks. Vairë said in a deadly serious tone, before it cracked around the force of her grin. To be fair to her childhood self, they had been incredibly cool rocks at the time. She allowed herself the snickers for a time, before she was focused back on Valiant.

Her face softened.

And immediately, was dripping wet. Vairë blinked in startled surprise, mouth half open. Her jaw worked a few times, as if she didn’t know quite what to say. She’d never been a particularly rambunctious child, trauma tended to do that to a person, but she remembered scuffling with her siblings the few times she got to.

Mentally rolling up her sleeves, she shot the larger man a half teasing you’re gonna regret that look. Vairë, dignified moondoe, then released a shouting war cry, and bum rushed the fuck out of Valiant.

So what if they both went down? Her face was already wet, wouldn’t hurt to drown a little.

There was a moment where Valiant felt sure he'd just ruined his image of her. It stretched long and agonizing, and the isbjørn nearly blurted an apology before her reaction hit.

A strangled cry of surprise met hers, and then quickly turned to a gurgle as Vairë collided with him.

Beneath the water, Valiant's grin was wide enough to bridge the seas. They tangled, and when they surfaces, Valiant came up laughing instead of gasping for air. His teeth pinched where they found purchase, but he remained on the defensive rather than trying to subdue the doe.

"I'm sorry, Vai," he said, sounding genuinely contrite despite the laughter in his eyes. He couldn't help following this up with, "My paw slipped. It won't happen again!"

But whether he truly wanted her to cease her attack was still dubious — the smile certainly hadn't fallen from his face.

She found herself beneath the water, pressing her paws to Valiant’s water-slick fur. The bubbles from her slashing jaws became laughter as she rose from the depths, leaping from her chest in hysterical giggles.

Teeth pinched at her fur, and she answered in kind, giggling growls coming from her maw. Vai, came the nickname, and she laughed even more. Her tail flung water every which way as she reared up to sling her chest on top of Valiant’s shoulders.

Well, Val. The informal tone she adopted made her sound far younger, or maybe it was the grin on her face.

If they slip, maybe you should not have them! She slipped into the water like a shark, ominously.

She had him off-kilter, albeit delightedly so. He panted more out of excitement than exertion, and then he whined a sharp note when the doe ducked once more beneath the surface. He danced his paws out of her reach, one after the other, over and over:

"Those are my hole-diggin' paws!" he cried, backing up until he had to swim to stay afloat. He hauled ass to the edge of the pool and hopped out, wheeling tail whipping water in every direction.

He slinked along the edge of the pool, looking for a good place to leap back in. His eyes were on the doe, however, shifty and sparkling.

"I don't think you know who you're messin' with, moonbeam," he growled, his lashing tail belying his amusement.

She snapped airily at his feet beneath the water, driving him out of the murky depths. Then, she rose like an alligator, only her nose and eyes visible above the water. And her muzzle and laid back ears of course, but she was quite scary right now and that could be overlooked.

She hummed a deep, throaty note, totally not because she had accidentally snorted water and was trying to not so subtly cough it up. Vairë planted her feet in the mud as best she could, rising so at least her mouth was above the water.

I don’t think you know what you’re messing with, ice bear. She clicked her teeth together, just to show she was the scariest thing here.