A/N: I am my own beta reader, any mistakes therefore' are mine.
Words in 'Ishvalan' can be looked up here: Capn_hoozit's Ishvallan Dictionary on the sons-of-the-desert-fma tumblr site
I apologize for not having an available link but FF.N will not allow links. They are stupid that way.
2.
It was nearly dark, the sun headed for the horizon and late into the evening when Taige managed to slip out of the settlement proper. It was considerably cooler, helpful considering the pack he was carrying. A tent, a proper tent! It wasn't a big one, but he didn't need big and with the future prospect of a home and employment he could relax just a little. He also carried his uniform issue, and a sack of necessary food. Draped over his shoulder was a new pair of combat boots as well.
Mentally, he was preparing himself for a very long night. He had done everything, so far, that was required of him in getting a foothold back in Ishval. He'd requested a home site in Central upon getting his military records, and when checking in with the Lieutenant in charge of returning refugees, had learned it had been granted. So he was registered, employed and had means to housing.
He just hadn't settled into the tent village.
He'd spotted, two days previously, the old, worn, overgrown track that lead its way up into the north eastern hills. Someone had driven over it, apparently quite recently. He knew the old road from memory and was saddened at the destruction surrounding it. War devastation had rendered huge tracts of Lejia uninhabitable. Too many craters, and the ruins were nearly untouchable. Following the old road he'd searched for a suitable campsite.
He'd chosen carefully though. A think dense copse of meskaa, acacias, and gnarled junipers. Filled with scattered shrubs and dried grasses, even tangles of honeysuckle long left to ramble at will. There was also desert willows, a sure sign of water. It was a mile out from the border edges of Ishval in thick, uninhabited wilderness, no one wanting to be anywhere near the ruins.
That had suited Taige just fine.
He slipped quietly into the scrub, aiming for a small shelter he had constructed. He paused, easing the pack and boots off his shoulder. Whistling through his teeth, he made six sharp clear sounds, trilling the last note up. He paused, waited, then repeated it with only five notes.
A rustling from the clearing ahead caught his ears and his smile softened his rugged features. From under a well hidden lean-to a child appeared. She was barefoot and wearing only a child's t-shirt that was two sizes too large. A small length of braided horsehair was tied around her waist. He dropped to one knee, beckoning with one hand while shouldering off the packs. Solemn red eyes studied him from the edge of the lean-to, then she smiled and scampered out to his waiting arms.
"Ahh, Veela, laleh..." he murmured, wrapping both his arms around her tiny body, trying not to crush her in his embrace. "How's my little moppet?" He asked pulling back and pushing the hair out of her eyes.
She was tiny indeed, almost too small. The size of a four year old and she was closer to seven. Too small and entirely too thin. She was all Ishvallan though, tanned, red eyes and white hair. The hair though was a definite rarity. It was a short mop of curls and ringlets, spilling in disarray all around her face. Her smile was ethereal and delicate as she stared into her father's eyes. She silently reached up and gently patted his cheeks. He smiled back, marvelling at the bloom of warmth that engulfed his heart every time she smiled at him. Reaching up to flick some twigs out of the curls he noticed the smudges of dirt on her cheeks and hands.
"Been in the bushes, eh laleh?" he asked, "Playing with the hummers?"
Veela simply nodded. Her eyes strayed to the pack and she looked at him, imploringly.
"It's been a good day, moppet. We have a tent! I have food and I got a job. We'll have a little celebration, Praise Ishvalla! Then we can get out of here and head to our new home. How do you like that?"
She just smiled, silent, her eyes studying his face. There was so much those eyes could speak. He kissed her cheeks, patting the tiny hands that still were touching his face and stood up. "Get a fire going, pet?" He asked. She nodded and scampered over to the lean-to.
With in moments she was bent over a campfire studiously applying herself to a flint and striker while he began unloading food from the sack he had been carrying. He had to be careful of his purchases. Staples had been badly needed, something that would have to last as he began to transition back into military life. Something that his tiny daughter could make. He'd found dried fruits, flat bread -real Ishvallan flatbread that he hadn't eaten in several years-, meskaa flour to make more and fresh vegetables in the Kanda markets. He'd even bought a small wedge of goat cheese. He felt like he was in the lap of luxury. Fresh vegetables and fruits. What he had been seeing in and around Ishval had left him feeling more hope than he had had in seven years.
He hadn't believed the news that Ishval's ancient river had been flowing again. How the hell had that happened? The Halik returned, praise the Creator! Which was why he had requested land for pasture out from the Lejia district. Most everyone was asking for homes in town, getting placed on a substantially longer waiting list. Which was why his request had been granted so fast. He still clearly recalled the overwhelming emotion he had felt when standing above their current campsite and seeing the thin streak of flowing silver water in the distance, the faint rushing sound just reaching his ears.
Was Ishvalla truly blessing his people after so long a trial?
All his intentions were to leave for the new home site that night. He had one day to explore, get settled in, then get prepared for active duty. The only enormous stick in the works was the tiny child, silently, earnestly puffing, with fat cheeks, on the spark of a flame to get their fire going.
Palms raised as they sat next to one another, Taige let Veela whisper the blessing for their meal. Yes, it was normal for the family leader to perform being the eldest, but he earnestly believed the children had more of Ishvalla's heart then sinners like him. Then he introduced her to things she had never had before, like the flat bread, explaining to her that he had learned to make it from his father.
Sweet dried apricots, sliced up cucumbers, and pieces of the goat cheese. At each new taste her little nose would crinkle at the strangeness of the textures but she would savour the flavours and eat everything he set out for her. She had learned from far too young an age not to reject whatever he had managed to scrounge.
There after he broke camp and the two set out in full dark, guided only by the stars and the thin crescent of a sliver moon. Veela even had her own pack, full of the smaller, lighter item they needed. Something about the shiny new black boots had fancied her and she had them draped over her little shoulders. Taige smiled fondly, he knew that wouldn't last very long, they hit the backs of her heels and her ankles.
The tent hung horizontally at the small of his back along with the food. He carried the parcel containing his new uniform under his arm. His night vision was thankfully sharp and he knew where to avoid grumpy, lethal snakes. Veela was his shadow, carefully following after him. He knew where he was headed, Lejia had been his home after all. Negotiating the destruction was another matter. It took hours.
By the time he was approaching what he knew to be his new site, Veela had joined the packs on his back, sitting on the tent. He'd tied her down to him with her own pack and she was sleeping with the abandon only small children could reach, limp as a noodle. Cresting a rise in the land, his practised eye swept the area, searching for where he could set up a temporary camp. He marvelled at the sound of the river below, closer now. He was up above the flood plain, near a dry wash leading down to the river. All around him hills and rises, full of dry grasses and occasional clumps of shrubs and trees stretched out to the thinly forested mountains not too far distant. It was ideal horse country.
He wondered for the thousandth time if any of the Wahiran Istiqan's had survived the war. Nobody in town had mentioned sightings of horses. Most everyone was taken up with the wild goats as being more economical. With a sigh, Taige headed for a thick copse of meskaa, mixed with willows, on a hill above the wash. It looked like a likely place to set up the tent. As he approached he could just make out a stake with a yellow flag marking a newly claimed land site. His was the only one out there, for the time being.
With care, Taige carefully shrugged off one of the packs, set down his bundled uniforms then carefully untied the pack holding Veela to his back. She began to fuss when he slung her gently around him. Holding her to him, he used his foot to clear out the detritus from the trees and exposed the sand, before laying her down, tucking the uniform bundle under her head. Then he stood up and turned towards the east as the greyness of pre-dawn began to light the sky.
Taige stood there, head bowed, palms up and prayed to the Creator for guidance for his unworthy heart for the challenging days that lay ahead. Even more so for the child that lay sleeping at his feet. He was tired, exhausted really, but there was so much that needed to be done. He needed strength, even more endurance and clarity to provide what they needed. The prayer concluded when true dawn began.
With a small fire started, water on the boil, Taige had set out some of their food, and was getting ready to set up the tent when he caught sight a Veela sitting bolt upright. Not a word came out of her slack mouth, only a few panted gasps. Though her eyes were open and looking around frantically, he knew she wasn't fully awake. He set the mallet and stake down, and sidled over, pulling her into his lap. She began to fuss then, sleepily rubbing her eyes, and trying to burrow her way into his chest.
"Wake up, sleepy," he murmured into her curls. "We've a big day ahead." Veela just rubbed her face into his shirt, curling her arms in and lying still, blinking towards where he had been setting the tent. He could feel her heart pounding. "Bad dream, moppet?" He asked.
She nodded, rubbed a knuckle in one of her eyes and yawned. She relaxed again, setting the knuckle of her index finger against her lips. He smiled at the gesture. He'd long ago forbidden the sucking of thumbs. This was the compromise, and he allowed it, knowing she needed her comforts. Their lives had been full of too many hardships, and more were coming. If this let her feel secure, who was he to deny it? He rubbed her back, feeling the ribs under her too long shirt. He wondered for the thousandth time if he was doing enough to provide. Gently bussing the top of her head, he let her infinitely soft curls tickle his face.
"Yeo sheho de, laleh." He murmured in her ear. God how he did love her!
In a child's soft voice, feeling for all the world like a feather against his neck she replied, "Yeo sheho de, papa."
"You awake yet?" He asked. She nodded. "Come help me with the tent, then we'll eat, alright? We got lots to do today!"
Small as it was, it went up fairly fast and he began laying out how to make their small site more permanent. He even had an eye towards a future corral, for a time when he could start training again. Now though, he set Veela off on a game he'd taught her on their long travels.
"All right, moppet," He said while he stored away their food up in a tree that she could climb to reach. No sense in tempting the jackals. "Go find me some water."
She turned and looked up at him a big grin on her face and mischief making her scarlet eyes twinkle. Leaning into his leg and peering up at him, she pointed towards the river.
"Cheek!" he said, wondering if a swim might not be amiss. "You know what I mean. Where's the water hiding?"
A tiny giggle escaped her lips, music to his ear, and she scampered off, diving into the dry wash and disappearing. He stood, listening, his eyes drifting to the river's edge to the south then he turned and looked east.
Almost to where the land met the sky at the horizon Ancient Ishval's ruins glimmered faintly in the rising sun.
He wanted to pinch himself again. His people had been the rural folk of Ishval, not accustomed to the city life, preferring the wide open places. The city had its purpose, but for peace and comfort and their centuries old living, rural Ishval was home. Ancient Ishval had been a fixture in their lives, not only as a land mark, but one of those forbidden place youngsters liked to dare one another to explore. It had been a favoured destination amongst the young men of the families that raised horses out here. Often times spending a night or two during the spring and fall. Now though... He shook his head again, turning his gaze south again. Seeing the flowing Halik in all its glory was still astonishing.
He abandoned his thoughts a moment later when Veela emerged from the bottom of the dry wash. She turned towards him, holding something up in her clasped hands. He could only smile, shaking his head. Mud and water dripped from her arms and fingers. He'd taught her well, searching for plants indicating water was their game. It appeared however, that she had found a bit more than just the plants. He bent and snatched up their bota bags for water.
He headed down the hillock. "What'd you find, moppet?" he asked. She was barely containing her glee, nodding towards a sizeable patch of loosestrife and cat tails, hidden under several ancient scrubby willows. He bent down and she carefully opened up her hands.
Nestled in her palms was a tiny green and brown spotted frog.
"Ah laleh," he murmured. "You didn't just find water, you found a pond!" He ruffled the curls dangling in her face. "Take me to where you found your little friend and we'll let him go, yes?"
She grinned at him and led him under the shade of the trees. It was a small pool, but with great potential, he could easily see being able to set up out here. Water was critical. Veela went ahead of him, stepping into the mud on the edge of the pond. Then she bent and opened her hands.
The little frog sat there in her open palms. Unbidden she whispered something in Ishvallan that Taige couldn't catch and the frog leapt from her hands into the pool, escaping. She let out another giggle and turned towards her papa.
The joy on her face was contagious. He smiled, glancing around them and knew he'd made the right choice, then he looked at her.
Considering the amount of mud on her arms and legs, he decided a swim in the Halik was definitely in order.
