Logs:Brother, Sister
| |
|---|
| RL Date: 12 January, 2009 |
| Who: K'del, Nakasha |
| Involves: High Reaches Weyr |
| Type: Vignette |
| What: K'del visits home and discovers an uncomfortable truth. |
| When: Month 9, Turn 18 |
| He'd made the promise flippantly, months ago, in one of his (admittedly, not that frequent) letters to his sister: as soon as he was allowed, he'd take her to a gather, somewhere, anywhere, so long as it was nowhere near Tillek. He might have forgotten, but she never would have, her quiet reminders coming in each letter (hers came more often than his; he'd've felt bad, but he was busy, and anyway, what was there to say?) By the time he and Cadejoth were cleared to *between*, properly, it was autumn, and gather season had more or less ended - but the harvest celebrations were beginning, and while the earliest weren't the most spectacular, it was a beautifully clear, crisp day in late month 9 that he sent word: tonight was the night. Nakasha was waiting for him, and in truth, he barely recognised her when he walked into the kitchen and saw her standing there. He'd visited a few times, these past months, since Cadejoth could fly that far, but it was only now, dressed as she was, that the difference the past turn had made truly became visible. A turn ago, she'd been thirteen, still, pre-pubescent for the most part. Now, approaching fifteen, she was... She was beautiful. More sturdily built than him, but far from fat, all creamy, peachy skin and dimples, tall, like he was, and with that same head of curls. He whistled, and she stuck her tongue out at him, but looked pleased all the same. "You'll have her back before midnight?" His mother affixed her gaze upon him, making him promise with little more than the expression in her eyes. He nodded. "And you won't drink too much, or let your sister drink too much. Or do anything we wouldn't approve of." He nodded again, and saw Nakasha wink at him; he had to smother his grin. "Promise, Mother. I'll take good care of her." His mother hesitated, as though she was deciding whether really to believe him - Kas had long suspected that she'd known more of his activities than she'd ever let on - but at length, she nodded. "Then have fun. And come by earlier next time. Your father and I would like to see you, too." He kissed her on the cheek, affectionately, then offered Kash his arm - they looked too alike, despite their difference in build, to be taken for anything but siblings, but nonetheless, they made a fine looking pair. Kash positively skipped once they were outdoors, all of a sudden her age again, instead of this beautiful, adult creature he was still slightly in awe of. "You're not going to go all protective of me, are you? Like you told mother you would?" "'Course not. All I ask is that you have fun, okay? And don't do anything too stupid." He grinned at her, indulgent, and she grinned back, clearly pleased, as they approached Cadejoth, who flicked his tail excitedly, blowing warm air in their direction. Nakasha squealed, though her hair was too short to be too mussed up by the air, and, anyway, K'del realised pretty quickly that she wasn't really concerned. He helped her up, something made more difficult by the length and tightness of her dress, and followed once she was settled. Moments later, they were aloft - and then, after K'del checked, and re-checked, their visual, gone. Their destination was in the Benden region, this evening, and it was positively chilly. Nakasha kept her wrap tight about her shoulders as they landed, and still, as K'del helped her down, though she eased it once safely on the ground - after all, as she told her brother, "It'd be a waste of the dress if no one saw it!" K'del could only laugh, and offer her his arm again, which she accepted, though he suspected not for long. They made their way through the crowds, looking at the stalls, drinking the spiced cider he bought ("I thought you didn't like apples!" "They're growing on me"), and eating hot pastries. Before too long, they ended up at the dance square, and Nakasha withdrew her arm, looking excited. "Dance with me, just once?" he suggested, and she nodded. It was a fast dance, and they enjoyed themselves, laughing and talking. As the music ended, another man approached, asked if he might break in, and K'del withdrew, letting his sister take the arm of the stranger, as he backed off to one side. There were plenty of girls about, a few, he suspected, who might even be making eyes at him, but for once, he was content to watch. It was a quite few dances later that he lost sight of her. He'd been chatting to a rider from Benden, a young greenrider not long out of weyrlinghood herself, when he suddenly looked up and realised he couldn't see Kash at all. At first, he panicked, looking this way and that, trying to see any sign of that warm blonde hair, the height. Nothing. He was about to break into a run, to hunt for her, when he forced himself to stop. Hadn't he told her he wouldn't do that? Hadn't he indicated that he trusted her? "I'm sure she's fine," his companion reassured him. "Didn't you say you were only a bit older than her when you left home? And," she flirted, "I bet you were running off with strange women already." But that made him feel worse. Was that what it was? Had she, his little sister, gone to--? He swallowed. The greenrider laughed at him. "Oh, come on. Like it's only you guys who do that?" "No," he began, but stopped. Then he tried again. "Just not my sister. I thought. I guess..." The greenrider, Deliane, put her hand on his arm. "Even little sisters grow up, K'del." Funny. They were so close in age - less than eighteen months apart, Kas and Kash, sidekicks throughout childhood - and yet he'd never stopped to think of her as a... as a sexual creature. That maybe, if he was doing something, she might also be. He gave his excuses to Deliane a few minutes later, barely noting her disappointment, and wandered off through the crowd. Eventually, as the night wore on, he ended up back by Cadejoth, out in the courtyard. Nakasha met him there, her hair wild, her dress less than tidy. He swallowed, felt sick. She looked at him. She sighed. "What, you thought I was all innocent, just a little girl dressing up in her big sister's clothes or something? You hypocrite. How old were you when you-- twelve? You've been gone a turn, Kas. I'm not a little girl. And I can look after myself." They didn't have much to say to each other, after that. He managed to smile at her, apologetic, and she seemed to accept this, though she was frosty, as she accepted his help to climb up Cadejoth, and seemed disinclined to answer his questions about whether it had been a good night or not. As he helped buckle her in, he asked Cadejoth, Can you stay *between* a little longer? Just... His thoughts were obviously close to the surface; the bronze needed no explanation, and only offered a whirl of chains as assent, and a wet mental lick of affection. If Nakasha noticed, that they took longer, on their return trip, she made no comment. She was cool, as she dismounted, and her thanks were muted. "I'm sorry, Kashie," he called after her, as she traipsed down the path towards home. She didn't turn, though he could tell she'd heard him. Instead, a few moments later, just before she disappeared inside, she called back, "You, of all people. Good night, Kasadel." They flew straight a long way before he passed Cadejoth the visual to take them home. |
Leave A Comment