[Flashback]Starting Fresh is Hard(Renalee)

[Volinir Orchid]

“I don’t think your nose is broken, which is a real miracle, but that cut on your lip looks rather nasty. And this side of your face is rather bruised. I have something to help with the swelling. And it won’t hurt to wash everything out with an infusion. But we’ll need fire for that, and...” Volinir looked up worriedly when she trailed off, "And what?" He realized what was about to happen a couple ticks before it did. The bottom fell out of his stomach, and new strength coursed through his limbs with a sensation akin to an electric shock. The terrified Sym bolted to his feet, the hut blacking out for a moment, his injuries forgotten, locked away in some other dimension. He dashed forward, throwing his arms around Ren as she sagged against him. Renalee's weight staggered him to his knees, but she wasn't going to fall and hit her head. Now it was Volinir's turn to panic. He laid her down on her back and pressed his ear to her chest. She had to be breathing. She just had to be alive. A wave of relief washed over him at the light rise and fall of her chest. One that was quickly overwhelmed by a fresh burst of terror. He wasn't a healer. In fact, he hardly knew the first thing about medicine. He could guess what was ailing her: Lack of food and rest. The problem was that he didn't know how to get them to her in her current state. He tore a small piece of bread from a loaf and gently tucked it into her mouth, waiting to see if she'd start chewing. He could liquify most fare, but then she might choke... "Argh! Why did I let myself stay and fight?" Volinir held her head to his chest, lightly stroking the golden hair he'd come to love so much while he continued to feed her (assuming she took well to the first morsel) and whispered petrified pleas in Symenos.

[Renalee]

Some people said that being unconscious was like sleeping. Those people had certainly never fainted before. Sleep was a peaceful state of both body and mind. Your whole being could relax and restore the energy it needed to function. Loosing consciousness was your own body telling you you needed to slow down. It was an instant turning off of all your cognitive senses. It was just a signal and as such it didn’t actually bring any relief in and of itself. The last season had been taxing for Renalee, both physically and emotionally. Having been captured and loosing her freedom was a big shock on its own, but for the duration of her travel with the slavers caravan she had also been beaten and starved regularly as a form of training. Then last three days had been a succession of one hardship after the other and the lack of food and sleep as well as the constant presence of fear had taken their toll on the young Kelvic. Her body had sent signal after signal, demanding attention be paid to its needs, but having been ignored for too long it finally just shut down. Ren’s eyes fluttered open and she promptly coughed when her mind registered something in her mouth. It turned out to be just a piece of bread which she managed to verify when it made it past her lips and into her hand. The next thing she realized was that she wasn’t in fact lying on the floor, but was in Volinir’s arms, her head cradled closely to his chest. She blinked up in surprise, her mouth forming a small ‘oh’ as realization about what must have happened struck her. Her head seemed heavy, her whole body felt weak and the sick feeling from earlier was still there. How long had she been out? “Hi,” Ren offered after a while, before popping the piece of bread back in her mouth and chewing on it without even considering her actions. She tried sitting up, but wasn’t too sure he’d let her go so she just gently pushed at his arms. This was silly, really. He was the one who had gotten beaten up by that guard so he was the one who should have been lying down. “I’m alright, really,” the girl attempted to reassure him, even giving him a small smile. If that wasn’t quite true right now it would be the moment she got some more food inside of her and caught up on some sleep. “You should lay down again. Have some food,” Ren added after a moment, worry coloring her features.

[Volinir Orchid]

Volinir's heart lodged itself in his throat when Renalee opened her eyes again, tears of relief falling freely. He showered her hair and forehead with his lips, ignoring the sharp pangs of pain that sprung from his actions. A few ticks later, Ren broke the relative silence, "Hi." Volinir laughed, squeezing her a little. "Don't ever scare me like that again..." he sobbed, grinning from ear to ear. Despite the painful and near-fatal start of their new life, he didn't once regret it in the slightest. Renalee was precious to him, more so than anything else. It had only been a day, but the thought of being separated from her made his heart clench. “You should lay down again. Have some food,” The wisdom of Ren's words were evident, especially when his stomach gave another furious growl. The burst of adrenaline that had given him fresh energy was starting to wear off, and the pain of his wounds and hunger were coming back in full force. He took a roll of bread about the size of his fist, and grimaced. Even though the Kelvic didn't seem like the judging type, and he certainly didn't mind her nature, he was worried his manner of eating might make her feel uneasy, or worse, disgusted. Still, it was that or starve, so he pierced the roll with his fangs, and waited the few chimes it took for the venom to do its job. Once the interior of the bread was reduced to a wheat soup, he sucked the liquified food up. He repeated this with two more rolls, then crawled up behind Renalee and snaked his arms around her, kissing her neck where there were no bruises. "Thanks for saving me..."

[Renalee]

Ren was initially startled by Volinir’s vehement reaction, unable to do anything but stare helplessly as tears spilled from his eyes. She reached a hand up to caress the side of his face that held the least bruises, thumb brushing away the stray warm droplets. She managed to pull herself up a little while still in his embrace and wrapped her own arms around the man. It really hadn’t been that big of a deal, something which the blonde tried to reassure him about, murmuring little nothings into his shoulder. "Don't ever scare me like that again..." Ren smiled softly as she pulled back to meet his eyes. “I promise.” With that she sat up and pulled their bounty closer. It was nothing special, but it had been paid for with pain and blood. And a life. Ren forced the thought away. It was not like a Kelvic to think like that, but her father’s influence had been strong and some of his teachings had found easy root in her soul. This had been necessary. Volinir had been in danger. Preferring to focus her attention on more immediate things Ren quickly selected a loaf of bread and bit into it. The crunchiness she loved so much had been taken away by the rain and eating the soggy bread wasn’t the most pleasant of experiences but food was food. Taking big bites and almost not bothering to chew, the way any starving person would, Ren paused for a moment to observe with curiosity the way Volinir was eating. It was like watching a peculiar sort of ritual, but after observing for a bit the girl lost interest and returned to her own meal. The more she was eating the more she realized how hungry she truly was. She knew her shifting between her two forms hadn’t really helped the matter and she had to restore the energy that single act had cost her. She probably wouldn’t be able to shift for a few days without feeling the same kind of exhaustion. That was ok, though. Ren hadn’t really planned on taking on her puma form at all while inside the city just in case those slavers got wind of her whereabouts. Today she hadn’t had a choice, but hopefully this wouldn’t be repeating any time soon. After a while, what had initially seemed to be an insatiable hunger was finally satisfied. Ren sighed contentedly and leaned back into Volinir who had come to sit behind her. He leaned down, kissing her neck tenderly before whispering:"Thanks for saving me..." The Kelvic let her head fall on his shoulder and looked up at him. From this angle his features seemed strangely sharper. “You saved me last night. It was my turn.” She straightened up again, pulling her backpack closer and taking out a piece of cloth in which some of her herbs were wrapped, followed by a roll of bandages and her waterskin. Without saying a word Ren pulled out a couple of dried leaves and some purple flowers which must have been beautiful once but looked rather miserable now. She put them all on a small strip of the cotton cloth she used for bandages which she tore with her teeth. She proceeded to run a little bit of water over it and handed it to Volinir, instructing him to press it to the bruises on his face.”It should help with the swelling and pain.” This wasn’t really how her father had shown her to use those particular herbs. They were really best when fresh, but in this state you were supposed to boil them in water for around 30 chimes and use the infusion for fomentation. This probably wouldn’t be as effective. But Ren figured - plants were plants - they would surely help, if only a little.

[Volinir Orchid]

How was it that Renalee knew how to soothe him, Volinir couldn't tell. They really did seem to possess an almost uncanny harmony, as if they had loved a lifetime ago, and somehow found each other again in new forms. At the upward tilt of her head, Volinir's kisses drifted up her neck and cheek, to brush her lips with his. Most of the bleeding had stopped at this point, but Volinir figured even a small scab might be a bit of a turn off. At any rate, he wanted something to take his mind off his throbbing head and sore bruises, and Ren was a painkiller without rival. Of course, she might not agree, and he didn't want to be pushy. Volinir slapped the somewhat improperly prepared tincture onto the right side of his face, tying it in place with a spare scrap of fabric. Once that was done, he laid down with his head in Ren's lap, smiling softly despite his injuries. Pain he was familiar with. Having someone supporting him through it, that was delightfully novel.

[Renalee]

With Volinir’s head in her lap Ren leaned her back on the hut’s wall. Bright daylight had easily made its way inside and was casting various patterns on the floor. Ren’s eyes felt suddenly heavy and she hid a yawn before entangling her fingers in the silver hair of the Symenestra. The day had just began and the girl already felt too drained to do anything... “We should be more careful in the future.” It was a distracted comment, but it was delivered with a thoughtful expression. “If we want to stay unnoticed we can’t afford any more encounters with the city’s guards.” Ren realized she should have probably taken the body of the dead man to one of the canals and pushed it in the water. It was sure to be discovered in that alley and the wounds on his body spoke for themselves - wild animal. She was sure she couldn’t be the only predator Kelvic in Ravok, but if someone was looking for her she had just left them a trail that was easy enough to follow. Her only hope was that they had left the scene quickly enough not to be spotted by a citizen woken by the commotion. After all, that was one of the reasons she had only bothered to move the body just a little bit. The other was a decided lack of awareness at the time. The blonde’s fingers trailed to the man’s forehead, but she still appeared to be distracted. Despite that, Ren smiled down at him and teased. “Perhaps you should leave the stealing to me next time.” Her eyes shone bright with both amusement and affection.

[Volinir Orchid]

Volinir closed his eyes, basking in the sensation of Syna warming his skin, and Ren's fingers running through his hair. "We just need to practice moving silently. You're right, though. That could have gone better..." “Perhaps you should leave the stealing to me next time.” The Symenestra laughed and turned around, trying to nuzzle his way past Ren's shirt to tickle and tease her belly with his lips. Some might find it strange that Volinir was still so bubbly after nearly getting murdered, but the way he saw it, a few bruises was no reason to sit around and not enjoy yourself. Besides, they were both full, and safe. Where was the bad news?

[Renalee]

Ren laughed quietly as she felt Volinir’s lips on her skin. It wasn’t too hard to forget this morning’s event and the girl could feel her muscles relax under the warm weight of her lover and the caress of the sun goddess. The hut seemed almost cozy with the dust particles floating in the light and the smell of old wood that wasn’t completely dry. Ren’s hands moved from the man’s hair and face to his chest. She was still wearing his slightly damp shirt which meant his pale skin was exposed for her to enjoy. She didn’t know if she wanted to sleep. It was true that the nightmares hadn’t come last night, but that didn’t mean they wouldn’t now. And there was now one more thing to plague her sleeping hours. She did need the rest however, so after just a few chimes of companionable silence and of her fingers tracing patterns on Volinir’s chest her eyelds started getting heavy. When she realized struggling against her body was futile yet again Ren slid to the floor so she was lying next to the Symenestra. One of her hands curled in a fist in front of her while the other went around the man’s waist. “I’m sorry,” the girl murmured, face buried in Volinir’s chest. “I can’t seem to keep my eyes open.” She drew even closer to him, one of her bare legs sliding between his. This felt so warm. So good. “Would you mind if we stayed like this for a while...”

[Volinir Orchid]

It was too easy to be lulled into drowsiness by Ren's relaxing presence, though Volinir's eyes snapped open with a small start when he felt her legs sliding out from under his head. The arm around his waist soon soothed him back into a happy stupor. His lover's lovely locks of sandy hair slid smoothly between his languidly moving fingers, while he stroked her knuckles with his other hand. “I’m sorry, I can’t seem to keep my eyes open.” Volinir chuckled sleepily, drinking in Renalee's heat and the feeling of her velveteen skin against his. "That's all right... Neither can I..." He let his hand rest on her shoulder sitting against the floor, as their limbs and fingers intertwined. A chime later, they were both fast asleep.

[Verilian]

Volinir +1 Climbing +1 Running +1 Unarmed Combat Lores: Beginning a New Life, Renalee +1 Running +1 Unarmed Combat +1 Medicine Lores: Beginning a New Life, Discarding the Shackles of an Old Life You Question My Logic? : There wasn't a whole lot of XP to give out here, but if you feel I missed anything, feel free to ask. Loot: 4 Copper Mizas, 1 Suit of Leather Armor (value 10gm) Notes: Aw, how sweet.. yknow.. except for the killing part. Let's hope those two are using protection, we all know what happens to mothers of Symenestran children. Oh, as far as the loot goes, you can split the coppers if you want. I didn't add the bread because your just going to eat it, but if you feel the need to, you may add it to your CS as well. Notice As per the request of the Founders, threads cannot be graded unless your CS is up to date. This means you need to add threads to your thread list when you make new threads, keep your skills up to date, ledger, living expenses, ect. If you aren't up to date, you'll get a PM from me before i grade your thread. If you are up to date, disregard this notice.