Closed [Ivory Aerie] Pillow Talk (Kovac, Alori)

[Alori Sai]

Alori took a final sip from the cylinder, before she passed it back. She did like the taste of the juice and had to remember to get some for herself. Leaning closer to Lavira, she plucked one of the rolls from her lap and gently bit into it. There was a peaceful look in the feature's of the tiny Endal as she laid back on the couch and stared blankly at the ceiling.

It was girl time plan and simple, and Alori had missed it a great deal. Life in the city was busy and with both teens ascending to Endal, their work load grew right along with them. As wonderful and mysterious as Wind Eagles could be, she was used to spending all of her time with, and around people and that's what she missed. "Hah, you make it sound like I forced you to go out. Well..ok, so maybe I did, but you needed to get out Vira." she added by lightly pulling on her arm. Lavira had the most interesting stories, Alori had to admit, and then she said it. "Wow..wait, you met an Akalak? So..what happened?" Her eyes were wide now and the teen had sat up completely, and crossed her legs in. Lavira's tone was serious and Alori was afraid of where this story was leading.

"Gods Vira...he didn't? Did he?" She shuddered to think of it, and didn't want to believe that it happened to her best friend. It had been years ago, and hadn't happened since, but Alori still remembered when that nasty dek tried to take advantage of her the season before she reached teen-hood. She had no idea what would have happened if Perith hadn't been watching her as she left the hopshop, but she was glad that he had been there. But the story got even worse and the teen just sat with her mouth open.

The story continued and she could feel her heart beating harder inside her chest, she could feel her soul pouring out to her sister, and a hand reached out and lightly squeezed Lavira's as she continued. Alori first felt something warm around her eyes, as the moister formed and tears started to roll down her reddish cheeks. She was angry, the teen was raging inside that someone had harmed her closest friend in that way, and worse she hadn't known anything about it. "I-I had no idea that you had suffered like this. Gods...what a petchin ass.."

Alori was infuriated, and her body felt so hot she thought she might burst into flames. She had heard stories of disgusting men like this, but she had done everything she could to make sure that it didn't happen to her. But to hear that Lavira had experienced it was enough. She hugged her sister tightly, burring her face into the woman's hair where her tears smeared between them. "Vira..." Her voice fell silent then, she had nothing else to say, nothing to offer. It was over now and the woman had been saved from her darkness by Kovac.

Alori had always thought him a sweet guy, but she had no idea just how amazing he was, and what he had done for her best friend. The moment had been so intense and so emotional that the teen was left unawares. Sitting back, she gently wiped the tears from her eyes and rested her hands in her lap. Now they were talking about dek and Alori just sat there."Umm..yea, I can..keep a secret."

x

[Lavira]

Vira shifted, turning so that she was better facing her colleague and friend with an elbow on the back of the couch to support her head, chewing at the inside of her cheek in consternation. "Well it's kind of silly, honestly, and I'm probably just making it more than what it really is." Should she truly tell Alori? It was a battle of the allegiance between friends, especially as close as she and Alori were, to share such secrets, and whether it was proper to tell her this.

Looking away and towards the eagle part of her home when the flurry of wings was heard, Vira raised her brows in surprise, listening. But no voice called, no mind reached for hers. It was not Mohya back with her lover from the hunt but Mohya's mate. The darker bird did not interact with Vira much, disagreeing with his mates choice in Riders like many of the other Eagles but unwilling to dispute it for the sake of his devotion to Mohya. It did not distract for long, though, as she turned her attention back to her sister, as if it was decided, the brief distraction having evidently sealed the deal.

"It probably is nothing but, er, I think I'm, ehm....heavy." Her seeing eye shot down quickly to her lap and then back up, the blind one having only made it half way before making its slightly less responsive way back up too. She watched Alori's expression to see if she understood, but thought immediately that her reference was too vague. Offering her friend the rest of her food, Vira spoke again. "That is to say, I'm l-" and then that damnable Tulaj screeched.

He had moved from the table at some point, a bit of meat still on his beak and one talon, and was now staring the girls with that unnervingly unpleasant glare he had. Now, all raptors had pretty much the same look, though most owls and harriers tended to have a generally softer, 'wiser', appearance (even if it came off slightly comical on the latter); but for whatever reason there was, Tulaj simply looked mean. He that kind of look that said he had many secrets to hide, none of which would be shared, and would at any given moment abuse whatever he could sink his shiny claws in. It was unsettling. How Vira could tolerate such a crazy bird was beyond understanding and even she scowled at the bird from her place on the pillow.

"Go away, Tulaj, I'm busy!" Though it did little but antagonize the albino into ruffling his feathers and hissing back at her, rotating his head impossibly to one side and peering at them from an upside down angle. Creepy bird...

[Alori Sai]

Alori laid her head back against the couch and stared at her friend. Lavira was braver than she gave herself credit for, and Alori now understood what Mohya had been trying to tell her that day. Strange thing how people grew closer after sharing such things, but the teen did feel closer to Lavira and silently thanked her for sharing that part of her life with her. "Come on, Vira? You can tell me anything. What is it?" Offering a weak smile, she reached out a hand for her sister and waited.

At one time Alori hadn't been that attuned to the wings of the wind eagles, and may have gotten them confused with the beating winds a few times, but now, after bonding and being around the eagles she too recognized the flurry of wings and gave a questioning glance towards Lavira. "Is that?" She had no way of knowing, but she wondered if Mohya and her sister had fought, it didn't seem like the bird not to speak. It was a more chatty eagle, even talking with her at length a few times in the past.

"You're heavy?" Alori asked arching a brow. "How can you be heavy Vira, you're my size." The teen shook her head and smiled. She felt for her friend, but she didn't know what it was like. Alori had always been small, even before the Kelwyn twins made her smaller. She had always held a more athletic build and a slender figure, however now there were yasi bigger than she was. But she could see what was happening, Lavira was in love and she wanted to look her best for Kovac. The guy himself, was well built and looked to have strong shoulders. Not to mention his ex's and those that only qualified for the one night,. The young Endal didn't have to compete with them, but Alori could tell that her best friend thought she did.

When Tulaj screeched, Alori jumped. She was used to being screeched at, though it was normally Skye giving a war cry before he attacked her toes, or once in a while when he waited until her bare legs were exposed and wanted to land on them. "I don't think he cares." She smiled, taking a piece of meat and crewing on it. "So, what are you up for? What do you want to do?"

x

[Lavira]

For a good many ticks, Vira simply sat there and stared at her friend when she thought she was referring to her weight. The teen was lean and evenly built, a little thick in the hip, but certainly not from fat. There was no such thing as obesity in Wind Reach for everyone (even the Endal) had the constant threat of starvation looming over their heads. Some may have better weight and tone than others, but all were relatively thin.

So that Alori thought she meant that? Well, it was honestly kind of funny and though Tulaj continued to stare menacingly at her and then at her sister too, it made the situation even more entertaining. Vira laughed, a smile creeping onto her marred face and eyes then closing, looking away as a heart-filled guffaw barked from the falconers lips. "You thought I thought I was fat?" She haha'd at the smaller woman, turning back on the couch and clutching at her side as the laughs raised the ever present pain up a little further. "Wow, Alori! Just wow!" She continued to laugh for a full chime and eventually found the strength to stop, breathless and teary eyed, grinning at her fellow teen.

When she finally could stop, Vira was leaning heavy against the couch, her right hand pressing into her side hard enough to leave an imprint of her hand there. A fit of giggles sometimes pealed from her lips, but she was mostly left to sit there, grinning. "Oh my friend, you're too much." Vira then leaned over and gave her a one-armed hug before getting off the couch and stretching slightly, grunting and kneading her fingers over that ugly scar to break the tension and ease it back into a state of relaxation.

"I certainly do not think I am fat. No I was talking about something else; don't worry about it, it's probably nothing." She grinned and went back into the dining area to gather up Tulaj's dish. The bowl had been picked clean, and the albino watched her closely from his perch in the other room. Moving to the wash basin, Vira rinsed it meticulously, then headed to the spare room to check on the eagle. It too had finished and was now resting in the nest. She slipped in and took the bowl off the latch quickly, closing the mew tight once again and then the door. She spared Skye a glance and then came back out, talking as she went.

"Well, I don't have much in the way of entertainment here. Kovac tends to go out and do things and I don't. I had planned on a hot bath after dinner and then just going to bed." She didn't offer a better suggestion, though. "Oh hey, how are you and Durveth doing? That bird's crazier than Tulaj, you know...She really hates me!" Which wasn't quite the truth, but Durveth certainly didn't consider Vira chum (in the good sense).

[Alori Sai]

"What else could you mean by heavy? I'm not good with riddles Vira." Perhaps the way she spoke, and thought had something to do with spending more time with birds than people, but Alori was stumped on this one. No one in the city was near fat, but that didn't stop vanity from running rampid throughout. People wanting to be taller, shorter, and even slimmer. The two teens had never talked about their weight before because they were both in peak form. Still those had been the woman's words, and the fiery teen jumped up on the couch when she started to laugh at her.

"Oh shut up, don't laugh at me!" It was too late, Lavira's laughter was infectious and Alori couldn't stop herself from joining in. "It's not funny, I thought you were serious.." Biting her lower lip, the teen scanned the couch and picked up the biggest pillow that she could find and attacked her sister with it again and again. Alori continued to beat her adopted sibling with the pillow until she stopped laughing, then collapsed on the couch beside her.

"You suck, you know that?" she added with another giggle. The young Endal's face was slightly flushed at the moment, and she would remember from then on to take everything her companion said to be in the form of a riddle. She signed softly, reaching an arm up to hug her friend, before they both got off the couch. "Well fine, so tell me what you were talking about?" Alori followed behind Lavira, and quickly rushed up to her and lightly tickled her near her arm pits. "Come on, tell me!" She squealed lightly as she continued to tickle her friend, hoping to get an answer out of her.

Alori followed along as they talked, and she wondered if she should feed Skye again so soon. Deciding to wait a bit, she went on with Lavira and talked more. "A dinner, bath, then bed? Yea, that sounds so awesome Vira. You really know how to do up the night." She smiled as she spoke, half expecting the teen to turn around and give her the chirping of a lifetime.

"Hah! She doesn't hate you..not really. She's just..odd. I mean..I'm basically a walking wind chime to her so..." she added a giggle and leaned against the wall. It was a trying relationship on both ends, and she had conveniently forgotten that it was her to make the wind chime suggestion. "So I guess it's just us for the night. We don't have to do anything special,we can just sit around and you can tell me more about Kovac."

x

[Lavira]

Was desperately trying to avoid getting into it again since the other had been unable to figure out what she'd meant the first time. Vira wasn't really one known to be vague normally, but she thought it had been appropriate in that situation; could Alori blame her?

With the birds content and both women now looking for something to do, Vira flopped back onto her couch, wincing as she did so then shifting to tuck a leg under her. The woman laughed a bit at the recent memory of Alori's pillow assault and how close they had become since that storm earlier in the season only for a shrug to raise and lower her shoulders when her friend commented on her boring night. "What? I'm a penny pincher, you know that, and I hate dancing. Besides the fact that it hurts, I suck. I just flat out suck at it, okay? And the Clam's closed for the season now too so what else am I going to do? I like my baths now that I have the opportunity to soak. Makes my side hurt not so much." Another shrug as she closed her eyes in thought.

When the teen opened them again, she was studying Alori closely, as if weighing the value of their friendship and if this uncertainty was something worth revealing. At last, she figured it would be, and so clarified what she'd tried to say before. "It isn't fair to talk about him when he's not here, Alori. What you know of him may be different from what I know. That and I don't want you feeling jaded about it because..." Her gaze shifted to her lap and then the pretty glass wall that looked out on the world, and then back to Alori. "Because he doesn't know that...that I, er, I think I might...Ugh, it feels so weird trying to say it! It's stupid, Alori, really, and is probably just stress but I'm realistic, especially after what that petch Garren did to me. I mean, seriously, I was scared out of my mind and then the earthquake happened and things just kind of..." She sighed, bit her tongue hard enough to wince and then spoke clearly and simply.

"What I mean to say, and which he does not know, is...is that I think I'm pregnant. Maybe...probably not...but maybe."

[Alori Sai]

"I was only teasing you Vira, you're so sensitive and serious. What am I going to do with you, huh?" Following the teen back to the couch, Alori sat down beside her, before curling her leg onto the couch and laying down with her head in her sister's lap. She turned to lay flat on her back and bent her knees together for the perfect fit. "Oh I know, right? The baths now are so much better than before. I can't believe I've been missing this my whole life." Alori smiled, staring up at her friend who was normally that much more serious than she was. They were complete opposites when it came to shopping and going out, but somewhere in their hectic schedules they found time for each other.

"You know you can trust me right?" she asked, hazel brown eyes peeking up at her while a mess of red hair covered her legs. Alori could see that this was something serious now, something much worse than she thought. But for this reason she really needed to know so that she could help if possible, or at least be there for Lavira in her time of need. The young woman was really guarded about Kovac, and while that wasn't surprising for someone in love, but she wasn't talking with just anyone either. She and Alori had been through a lot together and became very close by the end of it. But the teen relented in the end just to save the day. "Okay, so we won't talk about him, let's talk about you."

What the Endal told her was beyond shocking, and she jumped up quickly from her lap with a surprised look on her face. "Shyke Vira!" The teen wouldn't have ever guessed that was what she had meant by feeling heavy. "Is it..?" she paused, not wanting to finish and afraid of what the answer might be. "I mean..could it be Kovacs?"

x

[Lavira]

Felt as comfortable with Alori most of the time as she did with Kovac; why wouldn't she tell her something of this gravity? It was hard to, that was all, because of the sensitive nature of the subject. She had even kept her thoughts guarded from her wind eale, Mohya sure to interject her own wisdom if she sensed Vira's unease.

"Well, that's the thing. I am ninety percent sure it would be his, if I am. See, Kovac and I didn't hook up until, officially, late last season. And..er, we hadn't actually done it until our trip to the Loch back on the eighty-third. Just kissed and cuddled, I suppose you could say. I think what makes this so hard is because of what happened with Garren. He told me-" And Vira began to explain the problem surrounding Akalaks and pregnancy. They were told to have twice the length of a normal gestation and it was known to be difficult, though Inarta (unless they had physical problems) rarely had issues with pregnancy. Women often die during birth or during the pregnancy itself because of how hard it is. "...And it scared me for a while during summer. Even more when he up and left after I fell. Then Kovac came along and I just kind of forgot about it."

The woman rubbed the back of her neck and looked away, unsure. "I do not want to say anything to him. I'm a little scared again now. I mean; if it's not his...that is to say, if I am, and it isn't his he might be very upset. But how would I have known? I don't know anything about how that races...ya know...works. What if the women don't notice until after this long? I'm probably just making more out of it than it really is, my body's been weird since the accident. I still get nightmares, even." Alori might remember the teen screaming in her sleep when they had been temporarily stranded in the wilds during the storm. "Just, do me a favor and don't bring it up when he's around. We'll see what Winter brings. Petch, it's probably just a bug." The girl grinned but it was more strained this time as she glanced off towards the aeries where Qeeta and Skye were.

"Can we talk about something else now? I don't really want it to be a downer."

------------------------------------

The winds were savage as night blanketed the land, hinting at another frigid night to any caught outside. Thankfully, Kovac was not caught out for too long as Mohya navigated the jetstream and downbursts back to their home. The eagle carried the dead sheep easily and when they reached the landing at the butchery city-side, she set it down and shifted to let the hunter off. It was midnight and both were exhausted.

Mohya clucked at the male her rider was so painfully in love with. ~Make it quick and I will fly you up to the aerie. Ten chimes and then I leave without you.~ She said, ruffling her crest and 'glaring' down at the mixed blood. ~Vira is sleeping already.~ The quiet presence of her bondeds mind revealing that much. Kovac would have time to get the meat tagged for processing in the morning, or he could linger and do it himself (which would take more than ten chimes).

[ooc]Trying to let Kovac back into this now since conversation's waning.[/ooc]

[Alori Sai]

"Wow..so, what do you want to do? Do you think he wants a child?" This was a new deal for the teen to process. Never in her life had she had to worry about being pregnant. In her years, Alori had only gone as far as kissing a guy and nothing beyond. It was a serious subject, but as she sat there she smiled as she thought of Lavira and Kovac. The snarky halfbreed hadn't shown any signs yet, but she could tell that her sister was floating on the clouds. However the story of how Akalak babies are born, caused the girl's eyes to widen, her mouth to drop, and she even curled her legs in tightly. "Oh shyke..that's crazy."

Alori felt bad for her best friend, she could see she was worried, and the teen had nothing to offer to comfort her. She knew less about Akalak's than Lavira, and the questions and assumptions were making her nervous. Combing her fingers through her hair, Alori looked down at her lap, and back to her friend with concern in her eyes. She didn't know what to make of it all and it was freaking her out. "If it's not his, I don't think Kovac would leave you because of it. He's a good guy, he can deal." she probably wasn't making it any better, but she felt she needed to say something. "But I hope you're right, maybe it's just stress, you have a lot to do now, ya know?"

Returning the weak smile, she leaned over and hugged Lavira, and leaned her head against hers. "We'll be ok, and I promise I won't say a word to anyone." Lavira wanted to change the subject now and with all that had been revealed, Alori agreed. Still, after talking about it in mention, the teen's mind begain to wonder and she had to ask. "So...what's it like. You know..being with a guy?"

x

[Kovac]

Kovac was miserable. The hunt had left him chilled to the bone, and the strong wind against him as Mohya strained to maintain level flight made the trip back to Skyinarta a rough one. The pair finally touched down outside the processing area, and Kovac slid stiffly from the harness and unstrapped the rabbits. A couple Deks ran out with a cart, lifting the sheep carcass into it. Even at the late hour, the preparation of kills continued, the urgency of the coming Winter keeping hunters out later in hopes for catching more game, just as Kovac and Mohya had. The Avora could not help but scowl at the Drudges as they loaded the ram and took the rabbits from him, their furtive glances seeming to accuse him of falling short of some unspoken quota. They quickly averted their eyes and waited for the half-breed.

Kovac looked into the sharp, impatient eye of the Wind Eagle, then lifted his voice over the brisk winds. He sighed. "I want to get back, but I don't want someone else claiming my kills. I am going to make sure I oversee them getting tagged." The mongrel did not relish the walk back to the Ivory Aerie but he had to make sure he was marked for his contribution to the day's kill tally. "If you wait, I can ride back with you and get the harness off, so we don't have to wake Vira. If you go without me, you will have to wait until I finish and walk all the way up before you can get that stuff off."

Regardless of Mohya's decision, Kovac nodded to the eagle, then waved the Dek forward and walked with the cart into the meat processing area.