Kavala hadn't minded Rosela's questions about the child within her or even about Riaris. She was just a little uncomfortable because she had no idea where their relationship was going. They had good chemistry and enjoyed each others company, but Riaris had a life outside of Kavala's with the Kuvay'Nas and his own rather large family. Some days she saw him, and then she'd go days without seeing him. Sometimes he'd sleep over and blend right in with The Sanctuary folks, and sometimes it was as if he was a stranger to her. And truthfully she didn't know a lot about him, not really, not like she'd like to know.
But Kavala had been a Nakivak. In a way that was to Riaris' advantage. The Konti was used to relationships without commitments, sex without ties, and children brought into the world without married parents. From the moment she was brought to Riverfall as a raid rescue, Kavala had been virtually brainwashed that this was acceptable, normal, and expected. She'd never been shown a moments rudeness, discourtesy, or ill treatment, for all that to an outsider it sounded barbaric. Men had owned her contract and thus owned her. She'd wore bracelets that she could not take off and had suffered men looking her over when she was in town as if she were fresh meat. Even in those early times when she'd been often stopped in the street to ask if she was under contract or pending one hadn't offended her. She knew what they wanted. Even her last contract had been negotiated by an Akalak's father without that Akalak's knowledge and then he'd been sent to her to breed her like a stud sent to a prize mare. It had been an awkward situation for both of them that had ultimately turned violent because the Akalak's dark side was darker than even his father had realized.
Kavala had walked away from that situation with a punctured lung, two broken ribs, a broken collar bone, nose, and jaw. He'd walked away with a tattooed face and the inability to ever take a Nakivak again. And she'd lost the child she was carrying from that relationship on the the night of the Djed Storm when she'd spent too much energy shielding the sea gates from the raw magic outside. But the Shielding had held, the child inside had not, and though it was with great sadness that she'd lost the babe, it had won her freedom from her Nakivak status as an apology form the abuse she suffered under her contract.
And because of that, sometimes there was pain in her eyes. But she asked as little of Riaris as she could, partially not wanting to know the truth, and partially afraid she'd get too attached. But he was an excellent lover and an attentive companion, and so she hadn't minded when her body decided it was time to reproduce again.
But she saw the questions in Rosela's blank eyes. No, not because the woman was asking them or had blatant curiosity showing. No, she saw them because she saw nothing at all in the beauty's gaze when she'd asked. Kavala was an open soul, the secrets she did keep she kept very deeply. This was not one of them. "I enjoy Riaris' company. He's an amazing and attentive lover and we are friends. The child wasn't planned but is very welcome. But we are not married and we have no commitments to each other. It's hard to ask such things of them, with their incredibly long lifespans and the fact that they wear their tragic nature close. I did wish we shared more." Kavala said, leaning against the counter suddenly.
She wasn't a customer then, but instead just another woman sharing something with her own secret sisterhood. "But that I am enjoying myself enormously around him counts for a great deal. I know I love him. I have no idea how he feels, but regardless I would never tie one of them down. Children are so welcome in this world. There is too much death, Rosela, and too much grief to just manage to wade through a day without some sort of purpose to it. I came to this city as a Nakivak and I won my freedom servicing its men and giving them a child. Sometimes I think they don't know how to ... have a relationship with a woman that doesn't involve signatures and agreements and schedules. Someday I think they might learn, and when they do, I think they will start repopulating their species a whole lot faster than they are now." Kavala said with a smile, a tinge of sadness touched it though. "I'm just lucky Riaris is one of the fertile ones. I suspect many of them aren't. If they were, there would be more children. Men being men, that is." Kavala said, and waited as Rosela went to dig out aprons and gloves.
Rosela's instincts were correct. Kavala didn't want natural leather and her eyes didn't even stray to the ones which had the flowers tooled on them. She instead loved the red ones and the apron that matched. She also set aside the black gloves and apron too. "You'd be surprised. I use my hands a lot. For all that I am small, I doubt I'd squeeze into an extra small." Kavala said, trying on the gloves and finding the fit perfect.
"I practice dagger too. It's actually my favorite weapon. But I like blowgun, bolas, and crossbows too. Riaris is teaching me double bladed sword, though I'm just learning. He says daggers are great, but in close quarter combat I want a better reaching weapon when I'm too close for my crossbow. I tested in unarmed and dagger to get my mark." Kavala said, flipping her wrist over to display her Kuvan Tattoo. "I have no idea why humans can be so lazy. Have you noticed? Its the humans that don't test. I think everyone else does. I would think every human male who walked through the gates would want to be considered a class here and be on equal footing to the Akalak, but they just don't seem to care." Kavala curled her lip. Though her brother was human, for the most part Kavala had little love for the species.
Kavala nodded at the balance. "I don't carry that much with me, but I will have my cousin Aweston drop by a chest for you with the mizas later today and pick up all this stuff if you don't mind holding it. For one thing, I couldn't carry it. Too heavy." The Konti grinned, leaned against the counter, and looked thoughtful. "When my baby comes, maybe you'll like to spar with me. Since we are both working on daggers, it might be fun. I'll need to do all I can to get back into prebaby shape." Kavala said, throwing that out there for Rosela.
But Kavala had been a Nakivak. In a way that was to Riaris' advantage. The Konti was used to relationships without commitments, sex without ties, and children brought into the world without married parents. From the moment she was brought to Riverfall as a raid rescue, Kavala had been virtually brainwashed that this was acceptable, normal, and expected. She'd never been shown a moments rudeness, discourtesy, or ill treatment, for all that to an outsider it sounded barbaric. Men had owned her contract and thus owned her. She'd wore bracelets that she could not take off and had suffered men looking her over when she was in town as if she were fresh meat. Even in those early times when she'd been often stopped in the street to ask if she was under contract or pending one hadn't offended her. She knew what they wanted. Even her last contract had been negotiated by an Akalak's father without that Akalak's knowledge and then he'd been sent to her to breed her like a stud sent to a prize mare. It had been an awkward situation for both of them that had ultimately turned violent because the Akalak's dark side was darker than even his father had realized.
Kavala had walked away from that situation with a punctured lung, two broken ribs, a broken collar bone, nose, and jaw. He'd walked away with a tattooed face and the inability to ever take a Nakivak again. And she'd lost the child she was carrying from that relationship on the the night of the Djed Storm when she'd spent too much energy shielding the sea gates from the raw magic outside. But the Shielding had held, the child inside had not, and though it was with great sadness that she'd lost the babe, it had won her freedom from her Nakivak status as an apology form the abuse she suffered under her contract.
And because of that, sometimes there was pain in her eyes. But she asked as little of Riaris as she could, partially not wanting to know the truth, and partially afraid she'd get too attached. But he was an excellent lover and an attentive companion, and so she hadn't minded when her body decided it was time to reproduce again.
But she saw the questions in Rosela's blank eyes. No, not because the woman was asking them or had blatant curiosity showing. No, she saw them because she saw nothing at all in the beauty's gaze when she'd asked. Kavala was an open soul, the secrets she did keep she kept very deeply. This was not one of them. "I enjoy Riaris' company. He's an amazing and attentive lover and we are friends. The child wasn't planned but is very welcome. But we are not married and we have no commitments to each other. It's hard to ask such things of them, with their incredibly long lifespans and the fact that they wear their tragic nature close. I did wish we shared more." Kavala said, leaning against the counter suddenly.
She wasn't a customer then, but instead just another woman sharing something with her own secret sisterhood. "But that I am enjoying myself enormously around him counts for a great deal. I know I love him. I have no idea how he feels, but regardless I would never tie one of them down. Children are so welcome in this world. There is too much death, Rosela, and too much grief to just manage to wade through a day without some sort of purpose to it. I came to this city as a Nakivak and I won my freedom servicing its men and giving them a child. Sometimes I think they don't know how to ... have a relationship with a woman that doesn't involve signatures and agreements and schedules. Someday I think they might learn, and when they do, I think they will start repopulating their species a whole lot faster than they are now." Kavala said with a smile, a tinge of sadness touched it though. "I'm just lucky Riaris is one of the fertile ones. I suspect many of them aren't. If they were, there would be more children. Men being men, that is." Kavala said, and waited as Rosela went to dig out aprons and gloves.
Rosela's instincts were correct. Kavala didn't want natural leather and her eyes didn't even stray to the ones which had the flowers tooled on them. She instead loved the red ones and the apron that matched. She also set aside the black gloves and apron too. "You'd be surprised. I use my hands a lot. For all that I am small, I doubt I'd squeeze into an extra small." Kavala said, trying on the gloves and finding the fit perfect.
"I practice dagger too. It's actually my favorite weapon. But I like blowgun, bolas, and crossbows too. Riaris is teaching me double bladed sword, though I'm just learning. He says daggers are great, but in close quarter combat I want a better reaching weapon when I'm too close for my crossbow. I tested in unarmed and dagger to get my mark." Kavala said, flipping her wrist over to display her Kuvan Tattoo. "I have no idea why humans can be so lazy. Have you noticed? Its the humans that don't test. I think everyone else does. I would think every human male who walked through the gates would want to be considered a class here and be on equal footing to the Akalak, but they just don't seem to care." Kavala curled her lip. Though her brother was human, for the most part Kavala had little love for the species.
Kavala nodded at the balance. "I don't carry that much with me, but I will have my cousin Aweston drop by a chest for you with the mizas later today and pick up all this stuff if you don't mind holding it. For one thing, I couldn't carry it. Too heavy." The Konti grinned, leaned against the counter, and looked thoughtful. "When my baby comes, maybe you'll like to spar with me. Since we are both working on daggers, it might be fun. I'll need to do all I can to get back into prebaby shape." Kavala said, throwing that out there for Rosela.