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Head, Hand, And Heart
The young mother busied herself with caring for her cub to distract herself from her lifemate. It was true that Skywise had hurt her when he denied their recognition, but he had also more than apologized for his mistake. Yet every time she was ready to leap into his arms, more hateful words spilled out and she had no idea how to stop them.
Before much of the day had passed, Ember wanted to find the older elf but everything was so much more complicated when the stargazer was around so she put off searching him out. Finally, tanning leather with Moonshade had become tedious and she had helped Redlance gather more than enough roots. No one else could think of anything they needed help with and the sun was beginning to set.
Ember let procrastination convince her to put off seeking out the silver haired elf until the next day and attempted to sleep. The weather, however, seemed to have different ideas. A sudden storm blew up from Sun-Goes-Down, pushing dust into the sky that burned their eyes and lungs. All night and well into the day the storm blocked out the sun and kept the elves cowering under their furs. Only the occasional Sunfolk braved the harsh winds to bring water to the others.
To occupy their time, the elves kept up conversation around the dens through sending, telling stories and jokes. Ember listened to the idle chatter while she played with her daughter but her mind kept wandering to her estranged lifemate. She knew that he had left Howling Rock after their confrontation but she had no idea if he had returned before the storm. If he had, there was no reason to worry, but if he had been caught in the storm, he could be in trouble.
Silently the young chief argued with herself that the older elf was surely fine. He had survived much worse than a bit of wind. And then there was the undeniable niggle at the back of her mind that something had happened to the stargazer and he had more to deal with than just a storm. She pushed away the images of all the ways the silver haired elf could be hurt in the grasslands and focused on Farsky again.
A few minutes later and Ember was trying to peer into the unnatural darkness of the storm. The thought of Skywise in danger would not be ignored but she could never leave Farsky alone in the den and bringing her along would be dangerous in the storm. In an attempt to assuage her fears, the fiery haired chief tried sending to her lifemate, but there was no reply. He had long been out of sending range.
Finally, without consciously deciding on a course of action, Ember bundled her tiny daughter up in leathers, wrapped a fur around her head and shoulders and ducked out into the wind. The fiery haired elf slipped into her parent's den as they slept and carefully tucked Farsky into her mother's arms before facing the storm again.
There was absolutely no sense of direction in the blowing sands and hardly enough indirect light not to trip over the ground but Ember pressed determinately onward. With nothing to guide her except the need to find the stargazer, she wandered, sending blindly into the storm. The wind ripped and clawed at the thick pelt wrapped around her body and face, while the sand stung her legs and hands until she was sure blood was soaking into the ground with every step.
When the stubborn chief was finally considering giving up in her search, she was rewarded by the faintest tickle of sending against her mind. Pain and exhaustion fell away as Ember finally found a direction in the shapeless landscape. As the sending grew stronger, the fiery haired elf could finally make out words and she tried to move faster.
[Skywise?]
[Ember?]
[Are you safe?]
[Not really.]
[I'm coming, hold on.]
The storm seemed to push back harder against her small body, intent on keeping her from her lifemate but now that Ember knew he was nearby, nothing would stop her. After what felt like the passing of a moon, the chief could feel that she was close but she could see no further than her outstretched arm in the blowing dust.
[Where are you?]
[I don't know. I can't see]
[What happened?]
[I fell, but I don't know how far.]
Ember turned too quickly trying to protect her face from a wind gust and her boot caught in a leafless bush, sending her sprawling to the ground. As the High Ones would have it, the chief landed just shy of falling into the same hole as Skywise.
[I think I found you!]
Grateful to be out of the wind, the young elf climbed into the hole, careful not to knock any dirt down into the dark. It seemed that the ground had collapsed under the stargazer to reveal an underground hollow. But even with her elfin eyesight, Ember couldn't see anything in the hollow as no light could make it through the storm.
"Ember?"
"Keep talking so I can find you."
"I can't breathe. It's like being stuck in the mountain again."
The chieftess shivered at the memory of Blue Mountain despite having only been a child when she was there. It was an evil place, full of bad magic and broken dreams and they were lucky to have escaped. Ember shook her head to clear away the chill that stole across her skin and felt around.
Both elves gasped when their hands touched, surprised as much as relieved at the others presence. "What happened?"
"The ground just fell out from under me when I was trying to get out of the storm."
Ember nodded despite the darkness and followed the stargazer's arm until she realized he was buried in rubble, his hand free, but not nearly enough to dig himself out.
"You're stuck pretty good."
"I can't feel my legs, but I don't think they're broken."
"That's good because I have no idea how to get back to Howling Rock from here."
The fiery haired elf began pushing away dirt and rocks by feel, doing her best not to let anything shift that might crush her lifemate. She worked in silence, finally reaching his elbow and then his shoulder. As she cleared the rocks away from his face, she nearly poked the silver haired elf in the eye when he broke the silence.
"I'm sorry. I've done this all wrong."
"Don't be, I'm the one that should be apologising." Ember stopped digging and gently touched the stargazer's brow. "I was just too hurt and stubborn to accept the truth. And then I didn't know how to change."
"High Ones know I'm familiar with your stubbornness."
Even through the dirt and grime covering her hands, Ember could feel her mate smile. "Maybe we could try again and I'll try not to be so difficult?" She whispered the question hopefully, afraid of what his answer would be.
In the darkness of the hollow, Skywise closed his eyes and thanked the High Ones for small blessings.
[Kheel.]
[Fahr.]
Ember let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding and pressed their brows together, letting the joy of recognition wash over them until Skywise broke the silence again.
"How about getting me dug out so I can hold our cub?"
The stubborn elf sighed happily again. "Our cub."
Once Skywise's arms were free, he could help move the larger stones that had pinned his chest and legs. And as soon as the last rock had fallen away, the elves reached for each other in the dark. Ember wrapped her fur around their dirty bodies and they relearned each other's bodies as lifemates while waiting out the storm.
When the lifepair returned to Howling Rock after the dust settled, the rest of the tribe was busy cleaning the dirt from their dens to notice. Only Leetah had been watching for her daughter's return after having awoke to find Farsky in her arms. The healer spotted her daughter's unmistakable hair before realizing she was accompanied by Skywise.
Skywise and Ember parted at his den and the young elf bounded towards her mother. Leetah simply smiled knowingly and held out Farsky, relieved that the couple had survived the storm unharmed. She didn't push for an explanation as she had lived long enough to know when lifemates needed the time to come to terms with their recognition. And she rather looked forward to her own mate discovering who Farsky's sire was. Still smiling to herself about the unexpected revelation, Leetah decided she could think of no one better suited for her daughter.
Word quickly traveled through Howling Rock that Skywise had begun to den with the young chieftess but Cutter could not believe the rumors. All of the times he had seen his soulbrother with Ember, there was no sign that they had recognized. And the stargazer had been there when Farsky was born yet he had said nothing. Having no say in the matter anyways, the elder chief kept his surprise and pleasure at the bonding to himself.
Redlance cradled the tiny Farsky to his chest in a sling as he coaxed young plants to reach higher, smirking as he worked. Only Cutter's daughter would manage to make something as simple as recognition more complicated than human speech.
