Arrow Lake with a spine of steel

back dated to 7/24; i'm pretty sure they got booted by the checker on monday so they were only gone like 2 days at the most.

praimfaya is tired and she is caked in a layer of mud that @Blodreina frets will never come off. baby blue gaze starburst with the silver they have begun to transition into peer up at the wanlida as they move towards the borders of diaspora in slow unison. the prospect of the scouting trip had sounded exciting to praimfaya — and despite the small mudslide that had trapped them in a cavern within the shadow mountain for a few days it'd been a fun learning experience — the young wanheda is ready to return to ingram and go to their family den and sleep.

and then after she sleeps she thinks she'd like to seek out the general's kids and brag about her trip. a small yawn splits her lips and she thinks of breaking the tight silence that exists between her and wanlida, unsure why her mother's kill-marked shoulders tense with each step closer they draw to home. as the borders come into view and the scent of her father and home draw nearer, praimfaya's step quickens and she lopes forward with the only thought of telling her dad all about their trip and sleep and the eventual bragging to her playmates.

blodreina is weary the nearer they draw to disapora and as she glimpses down at her daughter she feels a lick of envy at the carelessness that the muddied wanheda has. their scouting trip, as she'd told @Ingram prior to their departure, had only been meant to last for a few hours to a day at most. two days hadn't been on the itinerary and given aurëwen's behavior and eventual departure, blodreina can't help but worry that their unintentional disappearance might be misunderstood. would this have been drageda she would not have worried; but it wasn't drageda and her position in diaspora was never as secure as her position in drageda'd been. of that, blodreina holds no illusions.

still, as the pair draw nearer she feels a stir of relief and longing to see @Ingram again beneath her breast. though it's unlikely blodreina would ever admit it there'd been a few hours, during their time spent trapped in one of shadow mountain's caves while they waited for the mud and rocks to settle enough for them to make their escape, when blodreina'd been scared. part of it reminded her of when, as a child, they'd fled sleeping dragon. mostly, she was scared for praimfaya's sake.

as praimfaya makes to go across the borders, blodreina stops her, reaching out to grasp her scruff briefly betwixt her teeth. she understands her daughter's eagerness but blodreina is cautious. the last thing she wants is a misunderstanding. at the very least, even if she worries for nothing it seems like a good idea to tell at least one of the leaders about the mudslide on the neighboring mountain so that anyone else who seeks to scout it does so with caution. so, she tips her head back and calls for ingram, @Stigmata and @Mahler.

those two days had crawled by for ingram, who had loved the prospect of his little girl and mate going out adventuring, and hated the loneliness that crept into their empty den once they had departed. he had gotten so used to blodreina sleeping here, praimfaya’s voice echoing there — now the den seemed devoid of life, and loathsome in its desolate emptiness. he was fretful once the pair did not immediately return; blodreina was strong, he reminded himself. she would come back.

his ears pricked at the howl that came, his heart rushing with gratitude that they returned safe. quickly, the dark male made towards them. first he gave blodreina a warm greeting in the form of a rather needy embrace, and then he turned to his fearsome daughter, noting the silver tinge in her baby blue. you got new eyes while you were out, the eyjolfur exclaimed jokingly, a smile lingering across his features. i like the color.

nontu! praimfaya greets ingram in trig when he comes into her view, her whole body quaking with the force of her wagging tail. she is aware that he does not speak trigedasleng as the wanlida and herself but in her relief and excitement at being home and seeing him again praimfaya slips. though he greets blodreina first, praimfaya beams through the mud that cakes her, proud as a peacock when he addresses her. i did?! she asks with a curious cant of her head, turning to look at blodreina who offers her a tired nod. her first thought after it being confirmed was that she should track down stag and show him in the way that he'd sought her out to tell her about his name.

first she's going to need a bath, she thinks, as she peers down at her mud caked legs with a small wrinkle of her nose. covered in mud was no way for a wanheda to meet with anyone. can we go? she asks her parents, eager to get herself cleaned up, her tiredness dissipating in the want to boast to her playmate about her 'new eyes'.

he had sorely missed his two girls; how he beamed at both, particularly praimfaya when she curiously tilted her head, unaware of her transformation. he shared a brief glance with blodreina, the smile edging out to concern: she looked woefully tired. he nodded once in answer and made a motion for praimfaya to lead the way -- for he wished to converse with blodreina a while, and find out just what had kept her from him for so long.

he was glad in hindsight at least, that while they appeared bedraggled and quite sorry, they were alive and had returned.

acchhhSORRY

ingram came upon them first, and then mahler, who bore no ill will toward the mountainwoman nor her babe. a smile wreathed his features as he watched the reunion of the little family, the only within diaspora's halls, and then he brought himself forward. "it is good to have you back, blodreina," the gargoyle murmured, looking fondly upon muddy little praimfaya.
"and vhat did you see vhile you vere avay?" the man inquired of the little one, stooping to her level that he might hear her small and piping words.

blodreina smiles tiredly down at praimfaya, of whose energy she wholly envies at that moment; but she is young and quick to recover, unburdened by what might have came to pass. if the young wanheda had been worried during the mudslide it was only because she'd no doubt been reading blodreina's own concern and fear. blodreina doubts that her daughter has yet to fully grasp her own mortality. as it stood, it'd taken blodreina herself quite some time to understand that she wasn't half as invincible as she thought herself to be.

praimfaya takes the lead and blodreina slows her steps a few paces as mahler joins in. it's good to be back, kapitän. bloderina replies gratefully with a small incline of her head before the older male engages praimfaya and reina, seizing the chance to exchange a quiet conversation with her husband, fixes her gaze upon ingram. it should've occurred to me that all the rain would bring about a mudslide, for this, she is upset with herself. upset that she put praimfaya's life at risk as she had. it'd been reckless — a mistake that should have belonged to eske the warrior and not blodreina the mother. thankfully it was a small mudslide and we were able to escape. unscathed but certainly not with being covered in mud.