An Old Warrior And A Young Maiden
Characters: Aikuen, Ella and Amethyst
Location: Moledeep
Moledeep: Mole Hall
Aikuen is walking around Molehall, with a pair of lovely otters on his rudder. They sit on it, causing it to drag along the ground. Aik doesn't care too much. As he putts around the hall, carrying a note in his paws. He looks at it oddly, and tilts his head.
Ella hrms, "Where hes go?"
"Abbey..."
"Whies?"
"Not sure..." he hrms louldy.
Amethyst comes in from the study. "See you found th note. He said he was going to leave one. And how are our otters today?" the blind ratmaid asks smiling widely.
Aikuen crumples the note and tosses it aside, "Aye. I found the note. You know, I wish he would actually TELL me when he leaves. I mean, The notes are fine. But I rather have him tell me..." he hrms loudly then says, "Fine" to the last question. Feeling an 'Amyisum' coming around.
Amethyst smirks, "Just fine? I'm fine too if you wanted to know."
Aikuen says, "Good... then" he nods before continuing to walk around the hall, with the little otters on his rudder. He slightly hums to himself as he just walks around.
And the little otters just hold on. Not saying anything, or doing anything. Just sitting there, holding on. So they don't fall off.
Amethyst asks, "Why does he have to tell you where he's going all the time anyway? Soon he'll be grown will still have to leave notes for you then?"
Aikuen stops moving and looks over toward the rat, "Because he is my son. And I care for him. I'm sorry that you don't get that. The world is a very unforgiving place." he then nods heavily, "He will have to tell me until I'm dead. And even after that. I want him to go to my urn, and tell me where he is going still... Why? Because I need to know..." he points out and hrms.
Amethyst says, "When you're dead you wont need to know. And don't you mean your grave?"
Aikuen points a claw at Amy, "When I'm dead. I WILL still need to know. Once I am reunited with him, when he dies. Then. I will not need to know anymore..." he puts down his claw and sighs, knowing that she wont get it, "Yes. Urn. As a beast of the soil, and a fighter. A warrior. And a killer. Than I will be burned. For what I have done in my life. As retribution. So to speak." he scratches his neck, "All named fighters have before me. And I will do the same..."
Amethyst gives the otter a wary look as if he'd just announced the sky was made of purple soup. "Uh huh. Well good for you."
Aikuen eyes her, "Aye. Good for me... I knew YOU wouldn't understand. But Will does. He even said that he wanted to be burned as well. And I respect that. As he did kill someone. Seems fitting for it..." Aik was already feeling grumpy this morning. And both rats aren't helping. But he is resisting the urge to lay chairs sideways all over the room, and watch the fun, "Anyway. No matter how old he is. Unless he moves away. He will still have to tell me where he is going..."
Both little otters use their free paws to suck on.
The otter's mood is catching and Amy responds in kind, "Well I had hoped to stay here and help with the twins and watch Chris grow up but if it does come to it moving wouldn't be that difficult. There are a good many villages along either coast or even in these woods were we could go. I only said I'd stay here til spring anyhow."
Aikuen smirks evilly, "What do you mean 'watch'? Don't you mean 'listen' and 'feel'?" he then frowns slightly, "If that's what Will wants. All I want him is to be happy..." Explains a few things, "I know. I remember..." he hrms.
"I thought you said you were fine?" Amy asks ignoring the otter's comments.
Aikuen continues to putt around the hall, eyeing a few chairs, "Yah. I SAID I was fine..." he points out.
"But are you?" the maid asks more seriously. "I don't know why he left anymore than you do. And yes I do miss him but I'm not falling to piece over it. He'll be back in a few days or maybe a week depending on the weather." And if he isn't she'll make him wish he'd never left to start with!
Aikuen shakes his head going over to one of the armchairs and plopping down. Of course removing his daughters first, and putting them by his footpaw, "I'm not. And it's not the Will thing. Well. Not entirely. I must have woke up on the wrong side of the bed. And then the Will thing, and you, didn't really help in the matter..." he sighs.
"After how you were when Fira left I couldn't help myself. It isn't good for any of us if you break down like that every time she leaves for a little while. Try not to take this the wrong way but I really hope you die before she does. I don't want to think what you'd do if it were otherwise." The blind maid shakes her head remembering how the old otter was without Fira around, the whole time she wasn't around.
Aikuen frowns slightly, "I am taking it the wrong way..." the otter growls out. He probably wouldn't, if he wasn't examining his own mortality recently, "And you don't have to worry about that..." he sighs, "If it wasn't for the twins. I'd probably would never get up out of bed again. They are my life. And when one of them leaves. I'm losing, a bit of that life. Will is a part of that group..." and he starts a story, "When my first wife died. I lost something that I held dear. Something that made life. Livable. And it was gone. But I had my first daughter. To keep me going. And then she was killed. And it took all my strength. All my willpower. To keep myself going. I was alone for 12 seasons after that. Then I met Will. And a bit of life that I lost. Came back. Then Fira. Then the twins. All that, that I lost. Is now here. That why I get all down when one of them leaves. Because no matter what. There is a chance that they wont return... Something you have to learn..."
Amethyst has to test this a bit. "So," she asks, "you'd be just as upset if one of the twins went to the abbey for a few days alone, were they old enough to go by themselves, as you would if Will went?"
Aikuen scratches his head, and nods, "Aye. I would... And if they all left. I wouldn't move. There be no point anymore." he sighs, "But hopefully it wont have to come to that..."
Amethyst asks, "So if the twins some day marry, and you're still around, their husbands would be encouraged to move in here?"
Aikuen tilts his head at her, "Huh? Well. If they do get married. I would not encourage anything. As I want them to be happy. Even if it doesn't make me happy. I'd rather be sad, then to make them sad. I'm not like to do that sort of thing. But. If they do. Great. If they don't. Great. I will still worry. But I will feel better, knowing that their husbands would be worrying as well..."
Amethyst sighs, "Can you hear yourself?"
Aikuen blinks at her, "What? I want them to be happy. Why do you think I let them go without a fight in the first place? True I will be sad, as you you clearly see... But I'm still not going to stop them. Or else... I would have..."
"Would have what, Aik?" Amy questions softly.
Aikuen says bluntly, "I will, Stop them, from leaving. But. Then they will get sad or mad. Then I will get sad, or mad. So it would be better off if I didn't..." he sighs.
"I see. ... the only way to stop a tree from growing is to kill it and that doesn't do much good for the tree. Even /if/ you could keep them here /and happy/ would it really keep you from being hurt by them or because of them? You can't stop them from living Aik. ..." the maid says quietly turning to go back into the study.
Aikuen chuckles, "No. It's not like a killing a young tree. It's more like... cutting a full grown tree. It provided me with shade and comfort for many seasons. And. I loved that tree. I'm glad that it grew up. But then it's like cutting it down. To make a cabin. And the tree, wants to be that cabin. So. Even though I will be sad that it will no longer be here. I will be happy in the long run, that it's doing what it wants to do. Ergo, that why I don't stop them from leaving. But it's still not going to stop me from being sad..." he sighs.
Ella stares at Aik, while Venei just wants to play with her rudder.
Amethyst will remember that trees are a poor metaphor to use with otters. " ... I see. But if something comes up where Fira isn't around for a while don't take it out on the rest of us."
Aikuen smiles, "As long as they don't cut down my entire forest. I will be fine, Amy." he then tilts his head, "What do you mean? 'Take it out'? When Fira left. True, I was sad. But I still did everything. I did my chores. Read to the kids. But I didn't. Take it out... Except for when I accidentally feel asleep. But that was once, and only was, an accident..." he hrms.
Amethyst scowls, "We were walking on egg shells the whole time to keep you from snapping any further then you'd already had. Yes you did your chores and were mostly good with the twins but if anyone else looked at you sideways you got all upset about it."
Aikuen scratches the back of his head, "Oh... yeah. That Amy. Is who I am. Or was, I should say. That's the hard part of me. Years of killing and living alone will do that to you. When she left. It must have. Decided to come out. Like when I was alone...I'm sorry. I will try to control it...." he sighs, and continues to rub the back of his head.
"Don't see how this place could seem that empty," Amy lies, "It usually seems quiet crowded t me."
Aikuen points out, "That means nothing. I was always surrounded by soldiers, and my comrades. But I would always feel. Alone. Lonely. I had no one to call my own. So. I pushed everyone out. It's very natural for a beast like me to do that." It's an otter thing, "I have to be close. To not feel alone... Thats what I'm saying..."
Amethyst thinks the otter's words over a while remaining silent.
Aikuen sighs again, "Listen Amy. If I ever get like that again. Just. Flat out, tell me. But be NICE about it. It should. Get me out of that funk. At least enough to not. Be such" he stands up and hold out his rudder for the twins. They climb on, after a bit of coaxing, "Anyway. I have to get back to my chores..." he hrms before heading off into the kitchen. With twins on board.
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