Redsand Canyon harvesting

she's looking for @Aquene but aw! <3

her friend had given birth!

tamar was surprised and relieved to find that the jealousy seemed to have banked down for now. she descended upon the densite that aquene shared with kallik, a bundle of new herbs caught in her jaws.

but perhaps she should not leave them here! maybe she should walk to the tablinum. tamar vacillated at the doorway, eventually dropping everything at her feet and chuffing softly into the darkness. "may i visit, aquene?"

Aquene had been working out of her marital den as to stay close to the children. Even the small runs she did to the tablinum felt like too long to be far from them in these critical hours. She was in the tablinum now, hurriedly collecting herbs from her stores and tucking them in the rabbit skin she had brought with her to transport them back as her husband watched over their children in her stead when Tamar’s voice breeched the air. “Only if you walk with me.” She offered though the tone was lighthearted and she offered her friend a tired smile. She was still recollecting her energy.
 
“It is good to see you, Tamar. How was the Vale? Kallik told me it was beautiful and full of life.” She could not wait to see it herself, though she did hope to hear from her latest protégé about the herbal prospects of the land they were to call home soon enough.

she rushed forward to embrace aquene, though gently.

"it is good for my heart to see you. the vale is beautiful. it is more than you can imagine, and filled with so many new plants i cannot count them all." she motioned to the wrapped bundle she herself meant to gift. "i brought some of them for you to identify and add to your wisdom."

of course she would walk with the other. aquene was lovely as ever but seemed older than tamar. wiser in a secret, satisfied way she would not yet understand. "was it very hard?" she asked, alluding to the birth.

She savored the embrace though she was grateful for the gentleness as her body recovered from the laboring she had done not long before.
 
Her smiled grew, even reaching the tired irises that looked her friend up and down. “I am excited for us to explore it.” She added with mirth dancing off her tongue so freely. Her husband had told her that it was beautiful, but she trusted a woman’s word more. It was not that Kallik did not know beauty, it was just that she felt men could not always appreciate the beauty that they saw.
 
“That is wonderful. I can teach you more about them too.” She added, eager to get back to some measured practice of healing since she had been sequestered to the den to watch over the children. They walked and Aquene felt a pip in her step that she had not had since the labor had taken it’s toll. “It was… though it went smoothly. There were no further complications like there had been with the Matrona’s delivery.”

tamar breathed out. "that is very good to hear." 

she had been worried. "towhee sends her well wishes. she says she will come and visit soon. but she is very pregnant." the girl beamed. "there are many mothers now." and to think this had once upset her. "i am ready to learn."

she looked at aquene again. "you are already back to work. is mereo's need so great?"

She smiled softly at the mention of Towhee as well. She was going to miss the woman when they departed for Epoch and established their home there. “She has to be ready to birth soon… I do wish I could be there for the delivery but they can be lengthy, and I am afraid that leaving my own children for that long might hurt them.” Instead, she had given Maxim the necessary tools to handle such a thing.
 
There was that question and she shook her head. “No, I am not… my need is though.” She admitted shyly, hushing her voice. “I’ve struggled with producing milk for the pups… the plants I have now help me with it.” She explained to the other woman. “It was… a common issue amongst my home… I am not surprised, but I have not mentioned it to my husband either. I do not wish for him to worry more than he already does.”

tamar shook her head.

"towhee seems very experienced at being a mother. i am sure you will be called upon if she is truly in need." she wanted to volunteer herself but she knew that her inexpertise would only be a liability.

aquene revealed that her own struggles lay with milk production. tamar nodded in concerned understanding. this was between women. "if i can bring you anything, either from around the canyon or the vale, tell me."

Aquene nodded with a soft sigh at her statement. “I know… it will not cease my worrying. I worry often about my friends. I worried for you all the time you were gone, even though you had Arsenio and Kallik with you.” She admitted softly. She’d always worry for the safety of those she held close, like a paralyzing fear of losing them, of being left behind and abandoned as they rose to whatever afterlife might exist.
 
It was far too existential for her taste, but it was already in her mind. There was a smile at the offer and she nodded. “I will show you when we arrive.” She promised, knowing she could certainly use more of the herb, especially in case Towhee or Ruenna started to have issues with their own supply. “I use fenugreek, though there are a few remedies that can be used for this particular issue.”

a small whine escaped her. 

but she could not keep aquene from her own mind. "then i must only do things that cause you to worry ... less," she said gently.

her ears swept forward as aquene detailed her own trials. "in the home of my mother, sometimes children were fed by more than one to help. i would do it for you," she grinned. "but your little ones have a healer for a mother. i think your remedy will work."

she was excited to meet the new children.

Her own eyes softened and she let out a soft chuckle. “I will always worry for my friends safety when they travel. It will be better when we have established the Vale and are there together.” She assured her softly, wanting the woman to blame herself for it at all.
 
She smiled softly at the offer and nodded. “Towhee helped feed the Matrona’s children during her pregnancy because she was leaking milk… it is an option, but I prefer it as a last resort. It can drain your body.” She offered softly though she was grateful for the offer. “Here we are.” She tucked inside, offering a nuzzle to her mate in greeting. She pulled @Nanuq and @Siku to her belly, offering her friend a smile. “They are named Nanuq and Siku… two boys.”

tamar gazed at them.

already the girl felt that she could see both aquene and kallik within them. she bent closer and cooed softly. "they are so small!" tamar marvelled. it was not her first time around newborns, but it was the first time as an adult with her own time so close.
she looked up with a tearful beam. "are you very happy, aquene?" she asked softly, searching the beautiful and tired face.

Aquene could not fight the unbridled joy that her friend was at last getting to meet her little ones. “They are, and they’ve already grown so much.” It felt like they doubled in size every day, even though she knew it was just the theatrics of her mind to tell her such things were true. Her gaze fell affectionately to her two son’s as the question fell from her lips.
 
“I am… I did not think motherhood was for me… but they bring me so much joy. I feel so complete.” She did not know hoe else she could word it to her friend, but she felt as though she had gotten her point across quite well. Though Tamar herself was not pregnant yet, she doubted it would be much longer before Tamar joined the brood of new and returning mothers with her own children.

one day she too would have this.

she grinned at the boys, clucked her tongue at their small noises, kissed their little downy backs. she was in love with them at once. 

"it is complete to have a family," she said at last, reaching to embrace her friend. "can i — i would like to be their aunt, if that is all right."

Aquene had little doubt that soon Tamar and Arsenio would join she and Kallik in parenthood. “It is… I did not think it would be, but it has changed me in a way I cannot possibly describe with words.” It was as if it had settled her frayed nerves, even if sometimes it seemed to wear her patience thin or push her to the brink of exhaustion.
 
She asked a request and Aquene grinned back at her. “Of course, Tamar. You are family. I will talk to Kallik about it but I sincerely doubt he will have any objections. We’d be honored if you and Arsenio would be aunt and uncle to them.” She felt comfortable giving that conditional permission without her husband present.

tamar nodded and hugged aquene once more.

"may the old mothers smile on me. when i come back, i hope it is to tell you i am with child."

she backed away then. she looked down at the boys and hesitated. "do you need me to watch them for anything? i do not mind!"

Aquene grinned at the statement and there was a light glimmer in her eyes. “I have no doubt that will be true, Tamar.” It was the truth.
 
Aquene considered the question but shook her head. “I think they are all settled for now. It is almost time to feed them so I should not stray… but perhaps later you could watch them while I get out to stretch my legs and get a drink?” She never had to worry for food, Kallik ensured all of her meals were brought to her, but water was not as easily transported.

last for me! gonna start them a new one lol <3

tamar nodded.

"i will be back then!"

she was vibrant. the girl kissed aquene's cheek, looked at the little ones a last time, and then departed to find arsenio.

She grinned at her friend’s words, an eagerly wagging tail and an enthusiastic nod being the signal that she eagerly awaited her return. She accepted the kiss to the cheek, offering one of her own before she settled back with her children, allowing them to suckle as she took her fenugreek and began to eat the fish that Kallik had left for her.