Disclaimer: The setting is AU; the elves are reunited in the original Holt (I think the splitting up was completely ridiculous anyway and it does wonders for my fic to keep them all together;-) ) .
I know it's a weird pairing, but I know I'm not the first one to think of it...
Stumbling through the forest, Skywise wondered dizzily why everything had become such a mess. Well, not really a mess, more like a personal disaster. How could this have happened? And why had he been unable to stop it? It felt like such a failure and he was even more disappointed in himself when he realized that it was all he really wanted right now. He'd always known Recognition was waiting for him. It was inevitable, it happened to all elves eventually. But in his naivité he had believed that he had some choice in the matter and that he'd be able to hold it off like Leetah had, but then until he really felt like giving in to it. The speculations about him and Timmain had strengthened those beliefs; they'd Recognize once the time was ripe.
But this... It was something he'd never even considered possible.
He paused when he arrived at a small clearing where a crystal-clear pond lay shining in the rays of sunlight of the early morning. The water looked a rich gold this way and the effect was only strengthened by silvery white flowers seemingly floating on large green leaves in the middle of it - water lilies, he believed Redlance called them. The elf stared in wonder; he'd never been here before.
It was as good a place as any to wallow in self-pity and maybe even think of something to do. He kicked off his boots and sat at the edge of the pond, with his feet in it. It was high summer and hot already, but the sun hadn't had time to warm this water. It was relaxing, especially to his buzzing mind. Maybe he could learn to live with it. The fact that he had recognized; not with her. That was simply impossible.
Ember had become a beautiful woman and all that – he probably would have tumbled in the furs with her if she hadn't been Cutter's daughter. Elves and especially Wolfriders didn't mind much to sleep with distant family members; they couldn't, there were too few of them. All Wolfriders were related in some way or another. But Skywise occasionally shared Cutter's furs, sometimes with Leetah too. Normally, if an elf Recognized when (s)he had a lover, they would form a three-mating if he or she didn't want to abandon that lover. That was quite impossible for them, of course. So what could he do? Sleep with Ember one night and with her parents the next? That sounded disgusting to him.
The alternative wasn't fun either; he could just impregnate her and leave her again. That was somehow not how he'd imagined his Recognition; he enjoyed his freedom, sure, but he had thought that once he'd recognized, he would have a steadfast partner. Not necessarily a monogamous relationship – he shivered at the thought - , but a partner who would always be by his side, no matter what. Maybe he should be content with the one he already had: his Tam. And leave Syil – her soulname sang through his head – to her suitors. Ironically, he had been teasing her about Mender and Teir only minutes before it happened.
After what seemed like hours of sitting there with his feet cooling in the mysterious pond, idly spashing now and then and watching a squirrel come down to drink, Skywise made his decision. He hastily put on his boots, not even bothering to dry his feet, stuffed his pants into them unceremoniously and started off, back toward the Holt. His pace kept building; after a few minutes he was running. Faster and faster.
He didn't know where she was, but he felt her. He was drawn to her. He would be until she was with child. She was not in the Holt itself; she had probably run off the moment after it happened too. After the initial shock – they'd been setting traps, joking and teasing, and suddenly WHAM – they'd looked into each other's eyes and the realization had hit them both that they'd just Recognized. An immensely powerful feeling of attraction and sheer horror had then overpowered him and her too, it seemed: they'd turned away from each other at the exact same moment. Skywise had started walking, not knowing what she did since his senses had dulled too much to hear Wolfriders move in the woods. Apparantly Ember had not gone to the others either. Good, they had to resolve this with each other before anyone else knew.
He found her at the edge of the river, hidden in the bushes surrounding a large stone: she sat watching the water with her back to it. It seemed fitting, somehow, that they both had sought the nearness of water. If he hadn't felt her presence, he would never have found her. She looked up when he came close; she had to have felt him the moment he felt her. "Fahr?" she sent uncertainly. At that moment she looked so vulnerable, so beautiful. "Syil," he answered without hesitation. She smiled angelically as he squatted next to her; as soon as he was at her level, she embraced him.
All coherent thought left the young elves as they gave in to the most powerful urge an elf could ever experience, a bonding that would result in a new life.