Splintered Preconceptions
An Ebony's Weavings: Splinters Story
by: manga and Yuuki Miyaka
Chapter One
QuietCry walked slowly out of the Village with hunched shoulders. He shouldn't have felt hurt by Itesa's absence. After all, even though she was his sister, he didn't know her all that well. Just the same, he still looked forward to seeing her along with the rest of his family. He shoved his fingers through his hair. She was growing up. He hadn't seen her in...what...five years now? There was always something coming up, or he was afraid of hurting her. Her mind was so fragile when compared to his. It just wasn't fair.
He...missed her. He actually missed her. It...was an odd feeling for him. Who knew when he would get the chance to see her again? Quietcry shook his head slowly. If only she had been there. But no.... She was probably out with a lovemate. She had blossomed, last time he'd seen her. He wondered who had snapped her up. Mother and Father hadn't mentioned anyone. Perhaps they had merely forgotten, or decided to let Isa tell him the good news herself.
Itesa wandered back toward her family hut, rubbing her short silver hair to dry it from her recent bath. She heard footsteps on the other path, and, hopping up on a rock, she looked to see who it was. QuietCry! It had been awhile since she'd seen her brother. She grinned wickedly to herself. This was the perfect opportunity....
She dropped her blanket, and sprinted back along her trail until she was ahead of him. Agily, she skipped over rocks until she'd reached his trail, then concealed herself and settled down to wait. "Heh," she thought. "Teach -him- to disapper for years."
"There are few enough my age, he's my brother, why can't he come play more often?" she continued. "Just because I put bee-sweets in his hair that time...." She paused. "Or let the lizards loose in his bed and they chewed his sandals.... I was a child. I didn't mean anything by it." The irony of her present position completely escapes her. The scrunch of sandals on rocks make Itesa's ears prick. "Here he comes!" she grinned, all thoughts of her previous 'childish' tricks vanishing from her mind.
"Now, land in front of him, or pounce him from the back? Decisions, decisions...." Her mouth curled in a gleefuly mischevious smile. Itesa shrunk back against her covering tumble-bush, and watched carefully as QuietCry passed underneath her.
Now! Itesa sprang from her hiding place in a smooth arc, her body in a tight bow shape, and her hands reaching for her brother's back. He smiled, then tensed as he heard something. Whirling, he turned just in time to catch his kid sister's body flying at him. Her hands caught his shoulders, and her momentum carried them both down.
"Taale!" she cried. "Did you miss me?" she grinned down at him.
::Isa!:: He sent with a laugh. ::What are you doing... here....:: He stopped, staring into her wide golden eyes.
::Surprising... you...?:: she Sent back, her Sending trailing off as she got the surprise of her life. She stared in shock down at his equally wide blue eyes, eyes that she had know all of her life but that now seemed to go down forever, dragging her in....
His breath caught in his throat, he slowly moves his arms around Itesa.... No.... *Ceili*. And he knew that his own name, Aliks, was singing through her head as well.
She shivered at the touch of his arms. "Aliks...?" she whispered, bewildered. There was fear in her eyes even as they pleaded for her big brother to make everything all right. Maybe pouncing him hadn't been the best idea.... Even as she wanted to cuddle close and let him soothe her, she trembled harder. She'd had lovemates, but had never experineced anything like this....
The fear connected to something in him. He held her closely, no longer feeling the Recognition, merely the fear. Everything would be all right. It had to. He smoothed her hair back, rocking her gently.
::It's going to be all right Ce... Isa.:: He shook himself at the lapse. Pulling back, he looked into her eyes, forcing him to lock down his immediate response. ::It's going to be all right.::
She froze at the partial mentioning of her Soul Name. The movement of his body against hers as he pulled back sent a thrill of terror through her. Terror, and something else entirely different.... "How... What...?" she croaked, her throat dry. She didn't dare Send, mental contact with him had been nearly overwhelming before, -now- was simply out of the question.
::I would never hurt you, Isa.:: As he gazed at her, there was pain in his eyes, and the worry that she had a right to be afraid of him.
Her brow furrowed. She didn't like to see pain in her older brother's eyes. "I-I know," she whispered.
He brushed a strand of hair from her eyes and a choked laugh escaped his mind. ::Whatever WILL your lovemates say?::
"Is this R-recognition, then? How can it be? You're my -brother-!"
::Mother and Father never told you, then . . .::
"T-told me what?" The rise of her curiosity abated her fear somewhat.
He brushed her cheek with his hand. He couldn't keep his hands off of her, no matter how he tried. ::I'm . . . adopted.::
Itesa ducked her head into the caress. Yes, she was still scared, but at heart he was still her brother, and she knew that he would not hurt her.
He swallowed at her movement. ::Don't do that, Isa.... Please....::
Though tempted to continue and torment him, she stopped, her own reactions giving her sufficient reason. She need not ask why. "You were adopted?" she asks, returning to safe conversational territory.
::Yes. A couple of years before you came around, actually.::
"Why?"
::You feel my Sendings and you can ask?::
A wry smile graced her lips. "I suppose you have a point...."
Suddenly her ears laid back in annoyance. "Why didn't they ever -tell- me?" she said with narrowed eyes.
::My parents didn't understand me. Rayek and Ebony did. I'm guessing that by the time you came along, I truly *was* their cub. At least as much as you are.::
Itesa smiled fondly, thinking of her parents. "They love children so much, I'm not surprised."
::High Ones, you're beautiful . . .:: His face colored as he realized that the thought slipped out.
"I know," she said with mock-smugness even as she blushed. Hearing it from her Recognized/brother was much different than hearing it from fawning Village Lads.
::I've . . . missed you.:: The words are stilted.
"It's your own fault," she told him as she rolled off of his stomach and curled up by his side. "If you'd visit more often, or better yet come stay... Mother and Father miss you too, you know."
::They are the only ones who don't mind my Sendings. Even you find it overwhelming....::
::I can bear it just fine,:: she Sent back, her pride a little ruffled.
::I can see it in your eyes, cubling.::
"You can't call me cubling, you're not that much older than I am!"
::I know, dearheart.:: He laughed.
She quirked a smile at the endearment. "-That- however, you just may be permitted to call me."
::So pleased you approve.::
::I miss you too, you know.:: she Sent quietly. "No one else is half as much fun to tease. Except maybe Cutter...."
He tickled her quickly, anxious to change the subject. Years of such tickle fights trained her reflexes well. She pulled her arms in to protect her sides. ::You're so silly.::
"Well, isn't that the pot calling the kettle black?" she said, glaring at him. She -hated- to be tickled.
As he Sent it, he planted a kiss on her nose. ::I love you, dearheart.:: Her ire faded with the kiss and the Send. As he pulled back, he realized that while he's always loved her, it's taken a new twist now. Something in him just *won't* call her sister. And he slowly realized that he didn't want anyone else to call her lovemate. ::Wh-who *is* the lovemate of the day, anyway, imp?::
Itesa searched his face thoughtfully. Brother, Recognized, even lifemate... he was still the same. Aliks he was now, had always been and always would be. She loved him in any form. He had born with her pranks as no one else would, and had always done his best to protect her, even from herself. She smiled a little at his stutter. "Luckily for you, no one."
::Wh-what do you mean?::
She stretched. "I am, or was, between playmates."
::W-was?::
She smiled slyly. "I suppose you'll do... Since you are not my brother in blood, and there is this little thing between us..."
He swallowed thickly. ::Are you sure?::
She chortled to herself. Wouldn't the Village Maidens be mad! For years they had tried to get her to bring her brother to them, but now he was all hers. She shivered. -That- was still a very odd thought. It would take some getting used too.
He stared into her face. He had never truly looked at the maidens of the Village before, knowing as he did that he would never have any of them. Certainly he had noticed Isa growing up, but.... And now, now she was alone, and they were Recognized. It was so... strange.
She played idly with a lock of his yellow-blond hair. She was quiet, thinking of an answer to his question. At last, she said "One way or another I must bear a child... I can think of no one I would rather have help me to raise it."
::Nothing would keep me from helping, dearheart. But... as your brother, or your lovemate?::
::I think you will always be both...::
His breath stopped in his throat at her Send. ::Ceili . . . :: Suddenly realizing where they were, he stood, pulling her up with him. ::I think . . . I think we should take some time, think things through. I don't want to rush into this. Especially not with you.::
She nodded sadly, agreeing with him without argument for once.
::I love you too much to make a mistake over this.:: It was fortunate for him that he Sent those words. Without the emotional subtexts, she could very easily have mis-interpreted. In fact, she almost did. His hand traced her jaw, then her lips. And he couldn't resist. He pulled her into a brief but passionate kiss, something that part of him had longed to do for years. And he was only just now realizing it. The strength with which she returned it startled even her.
He held her, feeling the warm press of her body against his, and he didn't want to let her out of his sight. It would be so easy to forget who they were to each other, what each tribe saw them as. And he felt her kissing him back. It was so sweet, so pure. He couldn't hold back the tears that came.
As it went on, she felt something fall into place. -This- was why she'd never stayed with any of the Village boys. Somehow, she'd always been comparing them with her brother.
She was his family, be it sister or soulmate, now and forever. No one could take that from him. He wouldn't let them. She was HIS, would be his, for all eternity. He had never looked at the other maidens for more than lovemating because there had been no interest there. Somehow, he had always known that he was supposed to end up here, in her arms. He had just never admitted it to himself. Or to her. And now he had to. He had no other choice. ::I-Isa?::
"Mmm?"
::Perhaps you should go now.:: His lips nuzzled the lobe of one ear. ::I... want you to be ready....::
Of it's own accord, her head tipped so that his lips brushed her neck. "What will you do?" she asked, forcing herself to pull away.
She could feel his lips smile against her skin. And then he kissed empty air as she pulled away. ::The truth?::
::Of course.::
::Probably go back to my cave and cry. Wish for you. And wait until you're truly ready for this. And hope that I'm ready as well.::
::Why not come back with me? What makes you think I'm not ready now? I'm not a child anymore.::
::I can't go back.::
::Why not? I'll be your shield!::
::Can't you feel it, Isa?::
::Feel what?::
::How I'm holding back. Even now I have to keep my Sendings in check for you.::
::What are you going to do? Live in the rocks until everyone can bear your sendings with ease? You have a long wait ahead of you!::
::There's too great a risk.:: Quietcry's head dropped. ::I know you're disappointed in me, Isa. I'm sorry. I wish I could make this easier on you. I do. But I don't see any way to without ultimately hurting others.::
::I understand, 'Cry, but this is not a situation that will go away in time. If you stay, maybe Savah or Suntoucher or Father can help you...::
His Send was sharp with barked laughter. ::You don't think they've tried?::
She raised her chin defiantly. ::Maybe -I- could help!::
::It's not that simple, Isa. I can't be fixed.... I'm not a little doll who's been broken. I've learned as much control as possible.:: She could feel dampened anger in his Sending.
::Father learned more magic when he saved you from that cave in. Maybe you could learn more too.::
::Let it rest, Isa. It can't do either of us any good.::
::First, promise me that you'll visit. Every day.::
::No.:: His eyes met hers, clashing defiantly. ::I won't promise something I can't keep. I can't. Not in Sending, and you know I can't speak.::
Crushed, she folded her arms and turned her back. "Fine," she chokes. "See you in another five years!"
He grabbed her arms. ::You don't understand, Isa. And I can't make you understand. I know that.::
She whirled. ::You're right, I don't understand! How can you keep yourself away from your family? Now, more than ever?!::
::I can't be around that many people so often, or for so long. I waited too long for you today as it was. It's painful, all of their voices inside my head. Why else would I live nearly half a day's walk away? I *do* love you. And I will come visit. But I won't stay, and I won't come every day.::
::Promise to visit as often as you can, then.::
He looked at her sadly. :I will make no promises. But you are my....:: He shook his head. ::I don't know what you are to me. That is what we need to think about.::
::Then be warned that I -will- come looking for you.::
At her warning, he smiled briefly. ::I love you, Ceili. I always will, no matter what.:: And with that, he turned, striding off into the quickly growing sunset.
::Why won't you promise to at least come as often as you can?::
::I just won't. I'm sorry, dearheart.::
"Brothers!" Itesa growled. "They always think they know what's best." Glaring after QuietCry with tears in her eyes, Itesa grumbled some more, then stalked home.