Checking in on Char

[Northen Light36]

Ann kept a close eye on her companions as she rode the last stages of the journey from Fira to Char. She'd hoped to convince Dami to ride double with Flame, being worried about his ability to keep up, but the boy had reacted to the suggestion with almost as much insult as a clan raised child. And he does ride well, Ann admitted. She should have expected it, she realised. Hadn't Shadow ridden as well as any Fire? Why would his son be any different?

So Dami rode his own horse, though not alone. He rode double with Lillian, since the girl had never been on a horse until her arrival at Fira. Ann had been tempted to leave her with Aideen, but Alyssa and Dami had refused to hear of it and really, Ann was responsible for the girl, not Aideen. So Lillian rode with Dami and little Shade rode double with Alyssa and all four children managed to keep up reasonably well.

~Stop worrying,~ Flame's mental voice dripped with amusement as she met Ann's eyes. ~They're fine.~

Thankfully, Ann replied dryly. I'd hate to have to tell Lya her son collapsed with sun-sickness or something because I didn't keep an eye on him. Same with Lilly.

~If you kept anymore of an eye on them, you'd have them all in your lap. Which I'd pay to see, actually. You riding with four children clinging to you. How you manage with the four of them underfoot, I'll never know.~

Ann snorted at the mental image Flame flashed to her then sat up a little straighter. "We're nearing Char. Should start running into scouts soon enough."

Flame too sat up a little more. She had an image to maintain now after all.

[Kender Bard]

Sure enough, one of the foot scouts noticed their approach. He played out a note on a horn and soon a companion scout came running. One went back to the clan, and the other went to approach the visitors. "Honored Leader!" the scout greeted with a smile on his face. "Welcome to Clan Char. And visitors. My friend's gone ahead to let the Elders know. Is everything all right?"

[Northen Light36]

"Everything's fine," Ann replied with a warm smile. "Fira's Heir, Flame, and I were just coming to welcome Clan Char back home and see how you all are."

Alyssa waved to the scout and gave him a friendly smile, then shifted her attention to keeping her squirming little brother from falling off of her pony.

[Kender Bard]

"This way then," the scout replied and began to lead the way back to home.

By the time the group arrived, the clan was as busy as a kicked anthill as folks scrambled to make themselves and their homes a little more presentable for the Honored Leader. Charminei, Charii, and Charanth were gathered in a close group, watching. Charii seemed excited, Charanth seemed tired and distracted, and Charminei's apathy was plain.

[Northen Light36]

Ann smiled slightly at the rush of activity, but she was hyper alert for any signs of trouble and noticed Charminei and Charanth's states instantly. Forcing herself not to frown, she dismounted and helped Lillian off Dami's pony while the rest of her party did likewise.

Once the horses had been handed over to a clan member to be put away, Ann picked up Shade and lead the group over to the waiting Elders and Heirs. "Elder Charanth, Elder Charminei," she greeted them then smiled even more warmly at Charii's excitement. "And of course Heir Charii. It is good to see you all."

Flame and Alyssa both bowed to Charanth and Charminei, exactly as a Heir should great an Elder and not a hair more, and nodded to Charii, recognising her as an equal. "Greetings from Fira," Flame said.

Dami and Lillian held back, looking around with curiosity and a hint of uncertain shyness. Though Dami was not normally a shy child, this was not his father's adoptive clan and he felt a good deal more out of place then he had in Fira.

[Kender Bard]

The two elders and heir responded in kind. Charanth managed a smile for Ann and beckoned to her. "Come. Sit. I'm sure you want to rest a bit after that journey and talk."

Charminei's eyes flicked over Dami and Lillian. "Who are the foreigners?"

Meanwhile, Charii was studying Flame, her gaze traveling up and down in a manner more common to men who look at Flame than women. She grinned slightly. "It's good to finally meet you more formally, Flame."

[Northen Light36]

Flame lifted an eyebrow slightly, but she enjoyed being admired and just grinned. "It's good to meet you as well, Charii. It's a pity it's taken this long, though I suspect duty kept us both busy."

Alyssa glanced back at Dami and Lillian, then smiled at Charminei. "That's Dami and Lilly, my friends from Maelstrom. Dami was coming to visit, so I asked if Lilly could come to."

"Dami is Shadow's little boy," Ann said. "Queen Lya thought a stay in Naurorod would be better for him then Maelstrom for... awhile." There was a note of coolness in her tone that was the only hint of trouble. "Anyway, a chance to rest and chat would be more then welcome. Though I think the children will be happier with a drink and then being allowed to go play with the clan children."

[Kender Bard]

"Charii," Charminei said simply.

"Right, right," the heir replied, hopping to in her efforts to be a good hostess by getting some water skins to pass around.

Charanth lowered himself back to a sitting position with a groan and Charminei flopped near bonelessly next to him. "The children can wander as they see fit," Charanth remarked. "So, is Fira being harried as much as Char?"

[Northen Light36]

"Enough to be a serious annoyance," Flame replied with a sigh as she sat down and sipped from a water skin. "Though I wouldn't say it's reached the point of threat, yet. Healer Aideen is being kept busy with minior injuries, but the raids have been mostly hit and run style rather then a serious attack. How has it been here?"

Ann sat as well, after setting Shade down and shooing him back to his sister. "Alyssa, look after everyone," she ordered her daughter then turned back to the adults. 

"Thank you Charii," Alyssa murmured, taking a drink from a skin and passing it around to the other children before handing it back and taking Shade's hand. "We'll just be exploring, mummy. We won't go far." With Dami and Lillian on either side, she hurried off to explore the clan.

Ann glanced after the four of them for a moment, then visibly forced herself to relax.

[Kender Bard]

Charii sat next to Flame, taking a long drink of water herself.

"About the same," Charanth said with a hint of anger, not at Flame but in general. "But it's severely impeding our efforts to probe deeper into the desert. We wish to reclaim our old territory, or at least most of it. But our scouts keep getting ambushed, stripped of everything and left to wander back to us... Presuming they get back before succumbing to heat and thirst. But we can't afford to send large groups of scout for simple forrays into the desert. Might as well scream 'come and get us' if we do."

[Northen Light36]

Flame scowled at that, then looked thoughtful. "Well, perhaps Fira can be of some aid there," she murmured. "We've been sending our scouts out with a mind in each team, so they can alert the clan or retreat from an ambush if they have to. It's allowed us to do a reasonable job of mapping the areas somewhat deeper into the desert. I'd be happy to share those maps with you, if you'd like. And perhaps Fira and Char could come to some arrangement to work together on future attempts at exploring. It will be to everyone's benefit if we can get back to something closer to normal."

[Kender Bard]

"Mm, I suppose," Charanth said. He seemed reluctant to accept. Charminei didn't comment.

"I think it's a great idea!" Charii chirped. "Anything that gets us back to our real home faster, the better."

"Hopefully it's not already occupied," Charanth muttered darkly.

[Northen Light36]

"One problem at a time," Ann suggested gently, giving Flame a glance that suggested she drop the subject for the moment.

"Do you ever take your own advice?" Flame asked, taking the hint and changing the subject.

"When I only have a single problem, certainly," Ann replied with a tired laugh. "Of course, I can't remember the last time life was that simple."

[Kender Bard]

"I don't think life was ever that simple," Charanth remarked with a snort. "We just one day wake up and realize it."

Charii seemed a bit disquieted, if not surprised, by her uncle's pessimism. She tried to lighten the mood. "Our time in the Beastlands was very interesting. All sorts of strange folk that way. I hope that the Packleader and his loyal followers manage to get rid of those nasty Belegites though. Too bad we didn't get to meet him. I'd have liked to have seen my brother." Charminei got up and walked away without preamble. "But he was doing far more important things, I hear."

[Northen Light36]

Ann visibly winced as Charminei walked away but tactfully didn't comment. "I think all the leaders were a bit busy for visiting," she replied lightly, but one hand drifted to the scars on her face. She wasn't vain, but it was a physical symbol of all she'd personally lost and she was struggling to cope with it.

Flame glanced at Ann in concern, then cleared her throat. "I wish I'd been there, personally. I've always been curious about the Beastlands, since it's where my father came from. Never had the time to visit, though."